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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 116 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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. bore — to drill
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. mine — for digging
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. degree — from a university
  7. pit — in a race
  8. degree — an amount
  9. land — ground
  10. capital — money
  11. land — a country
  12. pit — a hole
  13. degree — temperature
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. rule — government
  17. land — to come down
  18. rule — a law
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. bore — to tire
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. rule — to rule out

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