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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. stand — to bear
  3. key — in music
  4. present — the time now
  5. key — for a lock
  6. degree — from a university
  7. present — a gift
  8. bore — to drill
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. tear — to rip
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bore — to tire
  13. tear — from crying
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. degree — an amount
  16. present — there
  17. capital — money
  18. race — a contest
  19. race — the arms race
  20. degree — temperature
  21. tear — from crying
  22. key — the most important part
  23. race — humankind
  24. stand — on your feet

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