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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. cap — a lid
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bear — the animal
  7. cell — in biology
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. capital — money
  11. tube — a container
  12. drill — a practice
  13. capital — a city
  14. drill — army training
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. lean — to bend
  17. cap — a hat
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. cell — a phone
  20. tube — the underground
  21. cap — of ice
  22. wake — a trail
  23. lean — thin
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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