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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 116 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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. saw — the tool
  3. prune — to trim
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. capital — money
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. saw — the tool
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. cap — a lid
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. face — to confront
  13. face — part of the head
  14. prune — to trim
  15. capital — a city
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. face — to point toward
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. cap — a hat
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. cap — of ice
  23. game — a match
  24. prune — the fruit

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