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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. stand — to bear
  3. cold — not warm
  4. cold — an illness
  5. squash — the sport
  6. squash — to crush
  7. rest — what's left
  8. march — music
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. hand — help
  12. rest — a break
  13. firm — a company
  14. march — the month
  15. firm — decided
  16. firm — steady
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. march — the month
  19. hand — in cards
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. capital — money
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. rest — what's left
  24. stand — for spectators

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