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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. key — the most important part
  5. capital — money
  6. key — for a lock
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. wind — moving air
  11. rash — a series
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. vault — a safe
  16. rash — hasty
  17. pitch — completely
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. capital — a city
  20. prune — to trim
  21. wind — moving air
  22. prune — to trim
  23. key — in music
  24. arm — part of the body

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