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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. land — a country
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. drill — army training
  5. capital — a city
  6. land — to come down
  7. key — the most important part
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. key — for a lock
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. key — in music
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. land — ground
  16. drill — a practice
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. lean — to bend
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. lean — thin
  21. capital — money
  22. saw — the tool
  23. saw — the tool
  24. drill — the tool

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