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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. rash — hasty
  3. kick — in football
  4. fine — high quality
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rash — a series
  8. rock — a stone
  9. clip — to cut
  10. clip — a video
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — money
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. fine — all right
  19. clip — for paper
  20. rest — a break
  21. drill — army training
  22. drill — the tool
  23. rock — music
  24. drill — a practice

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