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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. suit — clothes
  3. chip — to eat
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. capital — a city
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. face — to point toward
  8. cold — not warm
  9. bark — to shout
  10. cap — a lid
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. suit — in cards
  13. cap — of ice
  14. face — part of the head
  15. chip — for betting
  16. face — to confront
  17. cap — a hat
  18. suit — to fit
  19. cold — an illness
  20. last — final
  21. last — to go on
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. last — finally

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