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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. bank — for money
  3. capital — money
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. cold — not warm
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. capital — a city
  8. can — a tin
  9. roll — a cake
  10. roll — a list
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. club — a group
  13. club — for golf
  14. bank — for money
  15. can — to be able to
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. cold — an illness
  20. club — for dancing
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a line
  23. can — a tin
  24. bank — of a river

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