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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. kid — to tease
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. wind — moving air
  7. cue — a hint
  8. cue — for pool
  9. object — an aim
  10. game — wild animals
  11. wind — moving air
  12. rule — government
  13. tear — from crying
  14. rule — a law
  15. object — to protest
  16. capital — a city
  17. capital — money
  18. game — a match
  19. kid — child
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. cue — a signal
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. wind — to turn a key
  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