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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. file — a tool
  4. present — there
  5. rule — a law
  6. capital — money
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. object — to protest
  9. capital — a city
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. lean — thin
  12. wind — moving air
  13. game — a match
  14. file — a document
  15. object — a thing
  16. file — a line of people
  17. present — the time now
  18. lean — to bend
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. wind — moving air
  21. present — a gift
  22. rule — government
  23. game — wild animals
  24. lean — to rest against

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