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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. key — in music
  3. squash — the sport
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. drill — army training
  7. fine — all right
  8. drill — a practice
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. key — the most important part
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. capital — money
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. drill — the tool
  16. capital — a city
  17. toast — bread
  18. key — for a lock
  19. squash — to crush
  20. wind — moving air
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. wind — moving air

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