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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 116 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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. capital — money
  5. squash — to crush
  6. court — of a king
  7. capital — a city
  8. tear — from crying
  9. bound — obliged
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. bound — certain
  13. court — of law
  14. dip — to sink
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. squash — the sport
  18. tear — from crying
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. bound — tied together
  21. tear — to rip
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. court — for sport
  24. capital — a big letter

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