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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. row — to paddle
  3. capital — money
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. capital — a city
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. spring — a coil
  11. bore — to drill
  12. race — the arms race
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. spring — of water
  15. race — a contest
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. wind — moving air
  18. row — a line
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bore — to tire
  21. race — humankind
  22. bat — the animal
  23. spring — the season
  24. wind — to turn a key

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