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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. game — a match
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. band — a music group
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. suit — clothes
  7. foot — a measure
  8. pit — a hole
  9. capital — a city
  10. suit — to fit
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. land — a country
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. land — ground
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. land — to come down
  18. pit — in a race
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. suit — in cards
  21. capital — money
  22. band — a ring
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. foot — 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