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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. capital — a city
  5. pass — a permit
  6. net — after costs
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. capital — money
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. net — for catching
  14. chip — for betting
  15. chair — a leader
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. fork — in a road
  18. wound — an injury
  19. chip — to eat
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. net — in sport
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. capital — a big letter

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