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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 second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. rule — a law
  4. fall — the season
  5. wind — moving air
  6. capital — a city
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. rule — government
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — the fish
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. foot — a measure
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. fall — to drop
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. fall — to drop
  24. foot — part of the body

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