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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. bass — low music
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. bound — obliged
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — a stick
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. capital — money
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. deal — to handle
  14. bound — certain
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bass — the fish
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. staff — employees
  24. bound — tied together

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