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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.

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: rock · straw · capital · fan · tube · safe · snap · pitcher

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. 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. capital — a city
  2. rock — music
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. tube — a container
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. capital — money
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. tube — the underground
  21. snap — to click
  22. rock — a stone
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. 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