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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. face — part of the head
  3. last — to go on
  4. capital — a city
  5. last — finally
  6. rest — a break
  7. chest — a box
  8. rest — what's left
  9. mug — to rob
  10. mug — a cup
  11. last — final
  12. chest — of your body
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. rest — what's left
  16. stock — goods
  17. stock — shares
  18. mug — a face
  19. band — a music group
  20. band — a ring
  21. face — to confront
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. chest — of your body
  24. face — to point toward

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