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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. saw — the tool
  3. rush — hurry
  4. net — after costs
  5. charge — in control
  6. capital — money
  7. spell — a short time
  8. capital — a city
  9. charge — electricity
  10. spell — letters
  11. charge — a price
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. scale — size or range
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. rest — a break
  16. rest — what's left
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. scale — in music
  19. spell — magic
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. saw — the tool
  23. net — in sport
  24. net — for catching

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