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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. pit — a hole
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. bore — to drill
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. cell — a phone
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. bore — to tire
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. wax — to grow
  20. capital — money
  21. cell — in biology
  22. pit — in a race
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. capital — a city

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