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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 valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. foot — a measure
  3. capital — money
  4. object — to protest
  5. can — a tin
  6. kid — child
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. spell — magic
  9. wind — moving air
  10. capital — a city
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. can — to be able to
  13. kid — to tease
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. press — to push
  17. wind — moving air
  18. spell — a short time
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. object — an aim
  21. press — newspapers
  22. spell — letters
  23. press — a publisher
  24. can — a tin

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