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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 120 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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. capital — a city
  3. land — a country
  4. chair — a leader
  5. foot — a measure
  6. present — there
  7. hand — in cards
  8. cue — a hint
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. land — to come down
  11. present — a gift
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. cue — a signal
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. land — ground
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. present — the time now
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. hand — help
  22. capital — money
  23. cue — for pool
  24. fine — high quality

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