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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 office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. saw — the tool
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. staff — employees
  6. capital — a city
  7. march — the month
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. mark — a grade
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. saw — the tool
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. march — the month
  17. staff — a stick
  18. deal — to handle
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. capital — money
  21. march — music
  22. mark — a trace
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. straw — dry grass

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