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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. mark — a grade
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. kid — child
  5. wind — moving air
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. capital — money
  8. mark — a trace
  9. fall — to drop
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. firm — steady
  12. kid — to tease
  13. fall — the season
  14. firm — decided
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. wind — moving air
  17. firm — a company
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. pit — a hole
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. pit — in a race
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. fall — to drop
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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