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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. bore — to tire
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. roll — a cake
  6. capital — money
  7. rush — hurry
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. lie — to recline
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. capital — a city
  15. mine — for digging
  16. bore — to drill
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. sharp — clever
  21. roll — a list
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. lie — an untruth

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