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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. capital — a city
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. bore — to tire
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. bore — to drill
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. snap — to click
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. stock — goods
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. wound — an injury
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. stock — shares
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. capital — money

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