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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. tube — the underground
  3. object — an aim
  4. cap — of ice
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. capital — money
  7. stem — to come from
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. cap — a lid
  12. capital — a city
  13. tube — a container
  14. object — a thing
  15. last — to go on
  16. last — final
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. object — to protest
  19. row — a line
  20. row — to paddle
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. cap — a hat
  24. ruler — for measuring

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