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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. shower — rain
  4. capital — a city
  5. drill — a practice
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. hand — help
  8. hand — in cards
  9. dip — to sink
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. cell — a phone
  15. drill — the tool
  16. cell — in biology
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. drill — army training
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. kick — in football
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. shower — to wash
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — for tennis

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