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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 120 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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. saw — the tool
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. race — humankind
  8. mark — a grade
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. capital — a city
  11. kick — in football
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. rash — hasty
  14. mark — a trace
  15. race — a contest
  16. race — the arms race
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. rash — a series
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. pound — a weight
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. saw — 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