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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. stock — shares
  3. suit — in cards
  4. clip — for paper
  5. lean — thin
  6. plane — a tool
  7. suit — to fit
  8. capital — money
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. drill — a practice
  11. press — newspapers
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. press — to push
  15. press — a publisher
  16. drill — the tool
  17. lean — to bend
  18. capital — a city
  19. clip — to cut
  20. clip — a video
  21. suit — clothes
  22. stock — goods
  23. drill — army training
  24. plane — an aircraft

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