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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. capital — a city
  4. spell — letters
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. wound — an injury
  8. capital — money
  9. bore — to tire
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. charge — in control
  12. spell — a short time
  13. board — to get on
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. rush — hurry
  16. bore — to drill
  17. board — a committee
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. charge — a price
  20. charge — electricity
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. spell — magic
  24. pitcher — a jug

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