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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. capital — money
  3. staff — a stick
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. bat — the animal
  6. mug — to rob
  7. present — there
  8. race — the arms race
  9. race — a contest
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. chest — of your body
  12. mug — a face
  13. capital — a city
  14. chest — a box
  15. chest — of your body
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. race — humankind
  20. staff — employees
  21. mug — a cup
  22. staff — employees
  23. present — a gift
  24. present — the time now

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