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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. drill — the tool
  3. drill — army training
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. bass — the fish
  6. clip — to cut
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. clip — for paper
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. court — for sport
  11. bass — low music
  12. capital — a city
  13. bore — to tire
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. bore — to drill
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. drill — a practice
  18. court — of law
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. court — of a king
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. clip — a video
  23. capital — money
  24. calf — a young animal

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