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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. mug — to rob
  3. bat — the animal
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. capital — money
  6. firm — a company
  7. root — the cause
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. mug — a face
  10. firm — decided
  11. game — a match
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. game — wild animals
  14. rest — what's left
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. root — of a word
  18. rest — a break
  19. rest — what's left
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. bark — to shout
  22. root — of a plant
  23. capital — a city
  24. mug — a cup

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