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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. capital — a city
  3. suit — in cards
  4. lean — to bend
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. chip — for betting
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. chair — a leader
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. spring — a coil
  13. spring — of water
  14. capital — money
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. snap — to click
  17. lean — thin
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. chip — to eat
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. suit — clothes
  22. spring — the season
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. suit — to fit

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