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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. content — the amount
  4. capital — a city
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. chair — a leader
  8. spell — magic
  9. capital — money
  10. cue — a hint
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. content — happy
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. spell — letters
  15. spell — a short time
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. cue — for pool
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. cue — a signal
  21. branch — a division
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. vault — a safe

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