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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. tear — to rip
  5. capital — a city
  6. wind — moving air
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. kick — in football
  12. tear — from crying
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. charge — a price
  15. tear — from crying
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. charge — in control
  18. bark — to shout
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. charge — electricity
  21. wind — moving air
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. bark — of a tree

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