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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. capital — a city
  3. fall — to drop
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. tube — a container
  6. tube — the underground
  7. root — of a word
  8. degree — an amount
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. saw — the tool
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. root — the cause
  13. saw — the tool
  14. degree — from a university
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. fall — to drop
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. degree — temperature
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. fall — the season
  21. capital — money
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. root — of a plant

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