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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. clip — for paper
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. last — finally
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. shower — to wash
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. club — for golf
  10. wound — an injury
  11. board — to get on
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. clip — a video
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. shower — rain
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. last — final
  18. club — for dancing
  19. capital — money
  20. wound — an injury
  21. last — to go on
  22. clip — to cut
  23. board — a committee
  24. club — a 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