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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. chair — a leader
  3. tear — to rip
  4. vault — a safe
  5. club — for golf
  6. bore — to tire
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. club — for dancing
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. club — a group
  11. fine — high quality
  12. bore — to drill
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. tear — from crying
  20. capital — money
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. capital — a city
  23. tear — from crying
  24. fine — all right

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com