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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. last — finally
  3. last — final
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. kid — child
  7. capital — money
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. capital — a city
  10. mark — a trace
  11. cold — not warm
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. last — to go on
  16. snap — to click
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. mark — a grade
  22. kid — to tease
  23. cold — an illness
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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