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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 116 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: last · wound · capital · club · key · present · wind · ruler

  1. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. capital — a city
  3. capital — money
  4. present — the time now
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. last — to go on
  7. present — there
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. key — in music
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. last — final
  12. last — finally
  13. club — for golf
  14. wind — moving air
  15. club — for dancing
  16. key — the most important part
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. club — a group
  19. present — a gift
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — an injury
  22. key — for a lock
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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