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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. capital — a city
  3. key — for a lock
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. mate — to breed
  6. deal — to handle
  7. lean — to bend
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. key — in music
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. band — a ring
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. suit — to fit
  15. mate — a partner
  16. mate — a friend
  17. key — the most important part
  18. capital — money
  19. cold — an illness
  20. suit — clothes
  21. lean — thin
  22. cold — not warm
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. band — a music group

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