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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. mug — a face
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. capital — a city
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. perch — the fish
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. saw — the tool
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. wind — moving air
  12. mug — a cup
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. saw — the tool
  15. chair — a leader
  16. mug — to rob
  17. bat — the animal
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. capital — money
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. chair — a professorship

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