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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 124 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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. tear — from crying
  4. current — of water
  5. game — wild animals
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. current — happening now
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. tear — from crying
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. shower — to wash
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. shower — rain
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. capital — a city
  17. capital — money
  18. lie — to recline
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. current — electric
  21. tear — to rip
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. game — a match
  24. game — a kind of play

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