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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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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: club · suit · tube · capital · drill · snap · wound · fine

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. fine — high quality
  3. snap — to click
  4. suit — to fit
  5. suit — in cards
  6. wound — an injury
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. drill — the tool
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. club — a group
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. suit — clothes
  13. wound — an injury
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. fine — all right
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. drill — a practice
  19. drill — army training
  20. tube — the underground
  21. capital — a city
  22. club — for golf
  23. club — for dancing
  24. tube — a container

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