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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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. land — to come down
  5. staff — employees
  6. land — ground
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. staff — a stick
  12. bound — certain
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bound — tied together
  16. staff — employees
  17. capital — money
  18. land — a country
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. capital — a city
  21. pound — a weight
  22. bound — obliged
  23. vault — a safe
  24. bat — in an idiom

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