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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bank — for money
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. tube — the underground
  6. tube — a container
  7. capital — money
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. shower — rain
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. shower — to wash
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. lie — to recline
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. bank — of a river
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. deal — to handle
  22. bank — for money
  23. kid — to tease
  24. kid — child

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