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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 120 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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. tube — a container
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. cap — a hat
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. press — newspapers
  10. game — a match
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. capital — a city
  13. cap — of ice
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. cap — a lid
  16. game — wild animals
  17. press — a publisher
  18. press — to push
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. capital — money
  22. tube — the underground
  23. plane — a tool
  24. safe — a strongbox

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