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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. tear — to rip
  4. tear — from crying
  5. ball — a dance
  6. tube — a container
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. tear — from crying
  10. stock — shares
  11. sharp — clever
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. ball — a great time
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. mark — a trace
  19. capital — money
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. mark — a grade
  22. stock — goods
  23. pass — a permit
  24. tube — the underground

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