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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. bore — to tire
  3. bore — to drill
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. charge — electricity
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. capital — a city
  9. pass — a permit
  10. track — a song
  11. charge — a price
  12. capital — money
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. charge — in control
  15. mine — for digging
  16. hand — in cards
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. wax — to grow
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. track — to keep track
  22. track — a path
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. hand — help

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