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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. suit — clothes
  5. race — a contest
  6. scale — size or range
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. suit — in cards
  10. present — the time now
  11. race — the arms race
  12. capital — a city
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. race — humankind
  15. row — a line
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. capital — money
  19. row — to paddle
  20. present — there
  21. suit — to fit
  22. hand — in cards
  23. hand — help
  24. scale — in music

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