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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 116 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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. wind — moving air
  4. pop — soda
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. prune — to trim
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. bore — to drill
  10. prune — to trim
  11. bore — to tire
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. capital — a city
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. pass — a permit
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. chip — to eat
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. capital — money
  22. pop — music
  23. chip — for betting
  24. pop — to visit

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