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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. present — there
  3. present — a gift
  4. kick — in football
  5. wound — an injury
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. rule — a law
  9. race — humankind
  10. race — the arms race
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. fall — the season
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. present — the time now
  16. rule — government
  17. capital — money
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. capital — a city
  20. fall — to drop
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. fall — to drop
  23. race — a contest
  24. rule — to rule out

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