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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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. staff — employees
  4. mine — for digging
  5. mark — a grade
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. capital — money
  10. cold — an illness
  11. mark — a trace
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. wake — a trail
  18. staff — employees
  19. staff — a stick
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cold — not warm
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. capital — a city

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