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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. fine — all right
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. last — to go on
  6. shower — rain
  7. bound — certain
  8. can — a tin
  9. bound — tied together
  10. can — a tin
  11. capital — a city
  12. bound — obliged
  13. rash — hasty
  14. capital — money
  15. fine — high quality
  16. last — final
  17. shower — to wash
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. mug — to rob
  21. can — to be able to
  22. mug — a cup
  23. rash — a series
  24. last — finally

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