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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. dip — to sink
  3. firm — steady
  4. club — for golf
  5. shower — to wash
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. club — a group
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. race — the arms race
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. firm — decided
  14. shower — rain
  15. capital — money
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. firm — a company
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. club — for dancing
  21. race — humankind
  22. race — a contest
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. dip — to dunk

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