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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. land — to come down
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. dip — to sink
  5. land — ground
  6. drill — the tool
  7. capital — a city
  8. land — a country
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. last — final
  11. mine — for digging
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. last — to go on
  14. drill — army training
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. last — finally
  18. lie — to recline
  19. drill — a practice
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. lie — an untruth

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