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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: face · mine · drill · wind · can · bat · suit · capital

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. suit — clothes
  3. wind — moving air
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. face — to confront
  7. face — to point toward
  8. capital — a city
  9. mine — for digging
  10. suit — in cards
  11. bat — the animal
  12. drill — army training
  13. can — to be able to
  14. capital — money
  15. can — a tin
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. can — a tin
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. face — part of the head
  22. drill — a practice
  23. drill — the tool
  24. suit — to fit

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