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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  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. capital — a city
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. mark — a trace
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. can — a tin
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. chip — for betting
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. wind — moving air
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. wind — moving air
  16. chip — to eat
  17. can — to be able to
  18. can — a tin
  19. mark — a grade
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. capital — money
  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