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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. chest — of your body
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. chest — a box
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. game — wild animals
  13. firm — steady
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. chest — of your body
  16. game — a match
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. toast — bread
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. firm — decided
  23. firm — a company
  24. capital — money

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