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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. staff — employees
  3. staff — employees
  4. capital — money
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. tube — the underground
  8. cap — of ice
  9. rule — government
  10. capital — a city
  11. spring — a coil
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. cap — a hat
  14. staff — a stick
  15. spring — of water
  16. tube — a container
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. spring — the season
  19. rash — hasty
  20. rule — a law
  21. cap — a lid
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. rash — a series
  24. nail — on a finger

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