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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. present — there
  3. chest — of your body
  4. last — final
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. present — a gift
  9. last — to go on
  10. band — a music group
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. chest — of your body
  13. capital — a city
  14. last — finally
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. lie — to recline
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. chest — a box
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. capital — money
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. present — the time now
  23. band — a ring
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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