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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. shower — to wash
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. wound — an injury
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. key — the most important part
  9. capital — a city
  10. tube — a container
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. shower — rain
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. key — for a lock
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. tube — the underground
  19. bulb — for light
  20. wound — an injury
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. key — in music
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. bulb — for light

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