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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 120 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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wind — moving air
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. rule — a law
  7. rash — a series
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. capital — a city
  10. bear — the animal
  11. wind — moving air
  12. bear — the animal
  13. branch — a division
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. capital — money
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. rule — government
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. rash — hasty

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