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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. rush — hurry
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. mate — a friend
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. foot — a measure
  7. bore — to tire
  8. mate — to breed
  9. track — a song
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. track — to keep track
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. pound — a weight
  16. toast — bread
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. capital — a city
  19. track — a path
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. mate — a partner

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