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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. mate — a friend
  4. mate — a partner
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. lie — to recline
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. wound — an injury
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. clip — for paper
  11. snap — to click
  12. capital — a city
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. rash — hasty
  15. clip — to cut
  16. mate — to breed
  17. clip — a video
  18. rash — a series
  19. deal — to handle
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. wound — an injury
  23. capital — money
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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