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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. object — an aim
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. row — a line
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. rule — government
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. object — to protest
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. row — to paddle
  12. content — the amount
  13. hand — help
  14. capital — a city
  15. hand — in cards
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. content — happy
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. rule — a law
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. object — a thing

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