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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. capital — a city
  3. object — an aim
  4. tube — a container
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. rush — hurry
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. row — a line
  11. kid — to tease
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. tube — the underground
  15. kid — child
  16. row — to paddle
  17. object — to protest
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. pitch — completely
  21. object — a thing
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. rush — to hurry

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