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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. object — an aim
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. object — a thing
  6. wound — an injury
  7. present — the time now
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. can — a tin
  10. capital — a city
  11. drill — the tool
  12. foot — a measure
  13. object — to protest
  14. drill — army training
  15. wound — an injury
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. drill — a practice
  18. present — a gift
  19. can — to be able to
  20. last — finally
  21. capital — money
  22. can — a tin
  23. present — there
  24. last — to go on

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