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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. present — there
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. present — the time now
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — employees
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. capital — money
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. fork — in a road
  15. cold — not warm
  16. vault — a safe
  17. squash — the sport
  18. present — a gift
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. squash — to crush
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. cold — an illness
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. staff — a stick

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