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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. season — of the year
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. bank — for money
  5. key — for a lock
  6. drill — the tool
  7. squash — the sport
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. drill — army training
  10. key — in music
  11. bank — of a river
  12. season — in sport
  13. capital — money
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bank — for money
  16. key — the most important part
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. row — to paddle
  19. squash — to crush
  20. capital — a city
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. drill — a practice

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