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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 116 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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. cell — a phone
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. rule — a law
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — help
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. lean — to bend
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. lean — thin
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. cell — in biology
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. capital — money
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. rule — government

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