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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  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. capital — a city
  2. file — a line of people
  3. file — a document
  4. chest — of your body
  5. file — a tool
  6. chest — a box
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. sharp — clever
  10. chest — of your body
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. kick — in football
  19. perch — the fish
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. safe — a strongbox
  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