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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. capital — a city
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. race — a contest
  7. race — humankind
  8. object — an aim
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. wound — an injury
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. race — the arms race
  16. wound — an injury
  17. object — to protest
  18. staff — employees
  19. plane — a tool
  20. capital — money
  21. kid — child
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. staff — employees
  24. object — a thing

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