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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. capital — a city
  3. cold — an illness
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. kid — to tease
  7. firm — a company
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. scale — in music
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. key — in music
  12. rock — a stone
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. capital — money
  15. key — the most important part
  16. rock — music
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. kid — child
  19. key — for a lock
  20. lie — to recline
  21. firm — steady
  22. scale — size or range
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. firm — decided

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