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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. capital — a city
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. capital — money
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. plane — a tool
  9. kick — in football
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. bark — to shout
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. band — a music group
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. band — a ring
  18. cap — of ice
  19. cap — a lid
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. cap — a hat
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. band — a rubber band

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