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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 120 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ball · bay · wind · capital · tear · stick

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. wind — moving air
  3. ball — a great time
  4. capital — money
  5. capital — a city
  6. tear — to rip
  7. wind — moving air
  8. tear — from crying
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. ball — a dance
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. tear — from crying
  18. capital — a big letter

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