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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. lean — to bend
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. capital — a city
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. chest — a box
  7. track — a song
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. track — to keep track
  11. capital — money
  12. pit — a hole
  13. chest — of your body
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. drill — army training
  18. lean — thin
  19. chest — of your body
  20. track — a path
  21. drill — a practice
  22. drill — the tool
  23. pit — in a race
  24. wind — moving air

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