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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. cue — a hint
  3. rash — hasty
  4. ground — a position
  5. last — to go on
  6. bore — to drill
  7. cue — a signal
  8. press — a publisher
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. last — final
  12. rash — a series
  13. cue — for pool
  14. ground — crushed
  15. present — a gift
  16. capital — money
  17. present — there
  18. last — finally
  19. press — to push
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. ground — the earth
  22. press — newspapers
  23. present — the time now
  24. bore — to tire

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