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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. object — to protest
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. chest — a box
  5. cold — not warm
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. chest — of your body
  9. capital — a city
  10. object — an aim
  11. sharp — clever
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. object — a thing
  14. saw — the tool
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. chest — of your body
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. capital — money
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. cold — an illness
  21. saw — the tool
  22. board — to get on
  23. board — a committee
  24. mouse — for a computer

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