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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 120 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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. cold — an illness
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. rule — government
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. firm — decided
  8. staff — a stick
  9. firm — a company
  10. rule — a law
  11. capital — a city
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. wind — moving air
  14. capital — money
  15. wind — moving air
  16. current — happening now
  17. current — electric
  18. firm — steady
  19. staff — employees
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. staff — employees
  22. cold — not warm
  23. current — of water
  24. wind — to turn a key

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