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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 116 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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. net — for catching
  3. cap — a lid
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. net — after costs
  6. kid — child
  7. cap — of ice
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. kid — to tease
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. stock — goods
  13. vault — a safe
  14. net — in sport
  15. cap — a hat
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. pit — in a race
  20. capital — a city
  21. stock — shares
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. capital — money
  24. pit — a hole

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