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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 chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. kid — child
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. kid — to tease
  7. net — for catching
  8. rush — hurry
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. fine — all right
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. rule — government
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. vault — a safe
  17. rule — a law
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. net — in sport
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. fine — high quality
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. capital — money
  24. net — after costs

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