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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. capital — money
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. face — to point toward
  5. rush — hurry
  6. scale — in music
  7. land — ground
  8. root — of a word
  9. pit — a hole
  10. root — the cause
  11. land — to come down
  12. face — to confront
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. staff — a stick
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. staff — employees
  18. capital — a city
  19. scale — size or range
  20. root — of a plant
  21. pit — in a race
  22. face — part of the head
  23. land — a country
  24. staff — employees

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