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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. capital — a city
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. net — for catching
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. net — after costs
  9. cue — a hint
  10. ball — a dance
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. cap — a hat
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. capital — money
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. cue — for pool
  18. cue — a signal
  19. cap — a lid
  20. ball — a great time
  21. cap — of ice
  22. shower — to wash
  23. shower — rain
  24. net — in sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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