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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. capital — a city
  3. file — a line of people
  4. capital — money
  5. rash — a series
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. file — a document
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. bat — the animal
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. scale — in music
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. file — a tool
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. rash — hasty

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