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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. staff — a stick
  4. cell — a phone
  5. tear — to rip
  6. capital — a city
  7. staff — employees
  8. staff — employees
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. capital — money
  11. mark — a trace
  12. bat — the animal
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. ball — a dance
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying
  19. date — the fruit
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. mark — a grade
  23. ball — a great time
  24. mark — to pay attention

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