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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. roll — a list
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. chair — a leader
  5. bat — the animal
  6. rash — a series
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. squash — the sport
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. capital — money
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. vault — a safe
  16. rash — hasty
  17. squash — to crush
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. capital — a city
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. roll — a cake

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