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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — a city
  4. can — to be able to
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. lean — thin
  8. mug — to rob
  9. rest — what's left
  10. capital — money
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. rest — what's left
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. hand — in cards
  15. mug — a cup
  16. can — a tin
  17. mug — a face
  18. tear — from crying
  19. lean — to bend
  20. rest — a break
  21. net — for catching
  22. can — a tin
  23. net — in sport
  24. net — after costs

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