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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. rash — a series
  4. tube — a container
  5. capital — money
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. kick — in football
  10. capital — a city
  11. tube — the underground
  12. fall — to drop
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. wake — a trail
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. fall — the season
  21. fall — to drop
  22. rash — hasty
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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