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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. shower — to wash
  3. plane — a tool
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. squash — the sport
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. shower — rain
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. object — to protest
  14. object — a thing
  15. object — an aim
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. squash — to crush
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. capital — money
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. dip — to sink

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