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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. rest — a break
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. capital — a city
  6. rest — what's left
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bore — to tire
  9. wind — moving air
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. game — a match
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. rest — what's left
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. scale — size or range
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bore — to drill
  21. kick — in football
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. game — wild animals
  24. capital — money

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