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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.

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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. ball — a dance
  3. hand — help
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. ball — a great time
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. clip — to cut
  10. charge — in control
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. charge — electricity
  14. clip — for paper
  15. fine — all right
  16. clip — a video
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. capital — a city
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. hand — in cards
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. fine — high quality
  24. charge — a price

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