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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. object — a thing
  3. suit — in cards
  4. capital — a city
  5. cold — an illness
  6. suit — clothes
  7. bore — to tire
  8. present — there
  9. mine — for digging
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. suit — to fit
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. object — to protest
  16. bore — to drill
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cold — not warm
  19. object — an aim
  20. capital — money
  21. present — the time now
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. present — a gift
  24. mine — belonging to me

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