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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. hand — in cards
  3. capital — money
  4. lie — to recline
  5. cap — a lid
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. mine — for digging
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — a city
  13. cap — of ice
  14. mate — a friend
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. cap — a hat
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. mate — to breed
  20. mate — a partner
  21. hand — help
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. mine — an explosive

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