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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. row — a line
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. pass — a permit
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. firm — steady
  8. tear — from crying
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. tear — from crying
  11. firm — decided
  12. capital — a city
  13. tear — to rip
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. cap — a hat
  17. firm — a company
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. capital — money
  20. wind — moving air
  21. cap — a lid
  22. wind — moving air
  23. row — to paddle
  24. cap — of ice

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