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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. pit — in a race
  5. cell — a phone
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. pop — soda
  10. drill — the tool
  11. pop — to visit
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. toast — bread
  14. pop — music
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. drill — a practice
  17. capital — a city
  18. mine — for digging
  19. cell — in biology
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. pit — a hole
  22. capital — money
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. drill — army training

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