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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. drill — army training
  3. track — a song
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. capital — money
  6. capital — a city
  7. press — to push
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. drill — the tool
  10. kick — in football
  11. drill — a practice
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. kid — child
  15. press — newspapers
  16. press — a publisher
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. kid — to tease
  20. track — to keep track
  21. deal — to handle
  22. wind — moving air
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. kick — a thrill

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