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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. cap — a lid
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. capital — money
  6. track — a song
  7. capital — a city
  8. land — ground
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. cap — of ice
  11. land — a country
  12. object — a thing
  13. object — to protest
  14. track — to keep track
  15. track — a path
  16. rush — hurry
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. cap — a hat
  19. content — happy
  20. content — the amount
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. land — to come down
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. object — an aim

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