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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. roll — a cake
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. court — of law
  5. roll — a list
  6. squash — the sport
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. cap — of ice
  9. bore — to drill
  10. capital — money
  11. cap — a hat
  12. capital — a city
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. court — for sport
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. wind — moving air
  20. court — of a king
  21. cap — a lid
  22. wind — moving air
  23. bore — to tire
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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