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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 120 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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. lie — to recline
  6. cold — an illness
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. file — a document
  11. press — newspapers
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. club — for golf
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. club — a group
  16. file — a line of people
  17. press — to push
  18. press — a publisher
  19. file — a tool
  20. capital — money
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. club — for dancing
  23. cold — not warm
  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