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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. capital — a city
  3. drill — a practice
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. drill — the tool
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. mark — a trace
  8. track — to keep track
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. lean — thin
  11. lean — to bend
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. game — wild animals
  14. track — a path
  15. drill — army training
  16. wind — moving air
  17. track — a song
  18. game — a match
  19. wind — moving air
  20. capital — money
  21. plane — a tool
  22. mark — a grade
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. mark — to pay attention

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