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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rest — what's left
  3. last — to go on
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. capital — a city
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. wound — an injury
  12. rash — a series
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. capital — money
  15. bound — tied together
  16. bound — certain
  17. wound — an injury
  18. last — finally
  19. rash — hasty
  20. last — final
  21. rest — a break
  22. bound — obliged
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — a loud noise

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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