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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 120 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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. staff — a stick
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. mark — a grade
  5. pop — to visit
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. band — a ring
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. mark — a trace
  12. tube — a container
  13. staff — employees
  14. tube — the underground
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. pop — soda
  17. capital — money
  18. pop — music
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. staff — employees
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. band — a music group
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. nail — for a hammer

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