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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. capital — a city
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. key — in music
  6. capital — money
  7. game — a match
  8. key — for a lock
  9. lean — to bend
  10. rock — a stone
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. hand — help
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. fork — in a road
  17. key — the most important part
  18. game — wild animals
  19. roll — a cake
  20. lean — thin
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. hand — in cards
  24. rock — music

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