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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. staff — employees
  4. capital — money
  5. cue — for pool
  6. staff — a stick
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. drill — a practice
  9. rule — a law
  10. present — the time now
  11. cue — a hint
  12. present — a gift
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. drill — the tool
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. staff — employees
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. drill — army training
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. rule — government
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. cue — a signal
  24. present — there

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