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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. spell — a short time
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. clip — to cut
  5. spell — magic
  6. rock — a stone
  7. bore — to tire
  8. object — an aim
  9. clip — a video
  10. object — a thing
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — moving air
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. bore — to drill
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. rock — music
  18. clip — for paper
  19. pound — a weight
  20. capital — a city
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. spell — letters
  23. object — to protest
  24. bore — gave birth

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