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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. wind — moving air
  4. rest — what's left
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. chair — a leader
  8. drill — the tool
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. rest — a break
  13. rest — what's left
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. capital — a city
  16. root — the cause
  17. root — of a word
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. capital — money
  21. root — of a plant
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. drill — army training
  24. leaves — to go away

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