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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. last — to go on
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. rock — music
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. capital — a city
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. drill — army training
  11. last — final
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. firm — steady
  14. last — finally
  15. rock — a stone
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. mark — a trace
  19. firm — a company
  20. drill — the tool
  21. firm — decided
  22. capital — money
  23. drill — a practice
  24. mine — for digging

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