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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. rash — a series
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. fall — to drop
  8. field — a subject
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. field — farmland
  11. clip — to cut
  12. fall — the season
  13. club — a group
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. club — for golf
  16. rash — hasty
  17. club — for dancing
  18. clip — for paper
  19. clip — a video
  20. capital — a city
  21. fall — to drop
  22. wake — a trail
  23. capital — money
  24. field — for sport

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