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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 116 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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. capital — money
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rest — a break
  6. capital — a city
  7. face — part of the head
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. fork — in a road
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. face — to point toward
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. face — to confront
  15. key — the most important part
  16. key — for a lock
  17. rule — a law
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. rule — government
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. bark — to shout
  23. rest — what's left
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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