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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: toast · wind · tear · capital · nail · bulb

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. wind — moving air
  4. capital — money
  5. tear — to rip
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. capital — a city
  10. bulb — for light
  11. toast — bread
  12. tear — from crying
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. bulb — for light
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. tear — from crying

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