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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. capital — a city
  3. rock — music
  4. capital — money
  5. file — a document
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. rock — a stone
  10. race — a contest
  11. file — a tool
  12. race — humankind
  13. track — a song
  14. toast — bread
  15. game — wild animals
  16. file — a line of people
  17. track — a path
  18. track — to keep track
  19. game — a match
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. race — the arms race
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. game — a kind of play

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