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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: rule · snap · pit · stick · march · row · capital · track

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. track — to keep track
  3. rule — a law
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. march — the month
  6. pit — a hole
  7. capital — money
  8. track — a path
  9. march — the month
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. snap — to click
  12. track — a song
  13. capital — a city
  14. march — music
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. rule — government
  17. pit — in a race
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. row — to paddle
  23. row — a line
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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