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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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. lie — to recline
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. plane — a tool
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. tear — from crying
  7. kick — in football
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. track — a path
  12. club — for golf
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. club — a group
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — money
  17. club — for dancing
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. tear — from crying
  20. track — to keep track
  21. track — a song
  22. tear — to rip
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. stem — to come from

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