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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 120 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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. capital — a city
  3. tear — from crying
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — a stick
  10. kid — to tease
  11. pop — soda
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. capital — money
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. pop — to visit
  17. mine — for digging
  18. tear — to rip
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. staff — employees
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. tear — from crying
  24. pop — music

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