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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. wind — moving air
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. field — for sport
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. bore — to tire
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. capital — money
  11. field — farmland
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. cue — for pool
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. scale — size or range
  17. field — a subject
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. bore — to drill
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. scale — in music
  23. cue — a hint
  24. cue — a signal

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