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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. capital — a city
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. rest — a break
  7. wake — a trail
  8. rash — a series
  9. rest — what's left
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. key — the most important part
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. key — in music
  17. rash — hasty
  18. rest — what's left
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. capital — money
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. key — for a lock

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