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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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. track — a path
  3. wind — moving air
  4. net — in sport
  5. capital — a city
  6. net — for catching
  7. bulb — for light
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. object — to protest
  10. net — after costs
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. track — a song
  14. object — a thing
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. track — to keep track
  20. bulb — for light
  21. wind — moving air
  22. capital — money
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. object — an aim

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