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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. cold — an illness
  3. capital — a city
  4. track — a song
  5. track — a path
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. capital — money
  10. rash — a series
  11. can — a tin
  12. tube — a container
  13. rock — a stone
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. track — to keep track
  16. cold — not warm
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rash — hasty
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. tube — the underground
  23. can — to be able to
  24. can — a tin

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