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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  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. pitcher — a jug
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. last — finally
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. last — final
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. deal — to handle
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. capital — a city
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. last — to go on
  16. lean — thin
  17. lean — to bend
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. mine — for digging
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. pound — a weight
  23. lean — to rest against
  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