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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. bass — low music
  11. rest — what's left
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — money
  14. bass — the fish
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. mine — for digging
  17. rest — what's left
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. lie — to recline
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. rest — a break

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