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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. capital — a city
  3. march — the month
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. rash — hasty
  7. march — music
  8. chip — for betting
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. stem — to come from
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. lean — to bend
  13. deal — to handle
  14. lean — thin
  15. capital — money
  16. chip — to eat
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. wind — moving air
  19. rash — a series
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. march — the month
  22. wind — moving air
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. deal — an agreement

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