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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. capital — money
  3. clip — to cut
  4. club — a group
  5. capital — a city
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. clip — for paper
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. toast — bread
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. club — for golf
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. clip — a video
  14. rock — a stone
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. chair — a leader
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. wake — a trail
  20. firm — a company
  21. club — for dancing
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. firm — decided
  24. rock — music

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