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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  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. drill — army training
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. date — the fruit
  4. clip — for paper
  5. rock — a stone
  6. capital — a city
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. capital — money
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. drill — the tool
  14. row — a line
  15. kick — in football
  16. land — to come down
  17. drill — a practice
  18. clip — a video
  19. land — a country
  20. row — to paddle
  21. rock — music
  22. land — ground
  23. clip — to cut
  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