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

Word bank: firm · perch · capital · ruler · snap · cold

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  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. ruler — a monarch
  2. cold — not warm
  3. firm — a company
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. firm — decided
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. cold — an illness
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. perch — the fish
  11. firm — steady
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. capital — a city
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. snap — to click
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. capital — money
  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