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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. cap — a hat
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. cap — of ice
  7. net — after costs
  8. capital — a city
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. last — final
  11. mark — a trace
  12. lie — to recline
  13. wax — to grow
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. last — to go on
  16. cap — a lid
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. last — finally
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. net — for catching
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. net — in sport
  24. mark — a grade

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