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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 116 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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. cue — a hint
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. rash — hasty
  6. cue — for pool
  7. capital — a city
  8. spell — a short time
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. spell — letters
  11. file — a line of people
  12. cue — a signal
  13. capital — money
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. rash — a series
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. spell — magic
  19. file — a tool
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. file — a document
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. mark — a grade

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