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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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. file — a document
  3. squash — the sport
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. capital — a city
  6. capital — money
  7. squash — to crush
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. pop — music
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. pop — soda
  13. wax — to grow
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. file — a tool
  17. file — a line of people
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. snap — to click
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. pop — to visit
  22. chair — a leader
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. wax — for sculpting

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