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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. capital — a city
  3. key — for a lock
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. chest — of your body
  7. key — the most important part
  8. chip — for betting
  9. tear — from crying
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. key — in music
  12. snap — to click
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. tear — from crying
  16. pit — in a race
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. pit — a hole
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. chest — a box
  23. tear — to rip
  24. chip — to eat

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