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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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. rush — hurry
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. scale — in music
  5. shower — rain
  6. fall — to drop
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. stock — goods
  9. fall — the season
  10. stock — shares
  11. capital — money
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. capital — a city
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. shower — to wash
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. scale — size or range
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. fall — to drop

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