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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: key · bear · race · game · staff · capital · kid · lean

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. race — humankind
  4. race — a contest
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. lean — thin
  7. game — a match
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. key — for a lock
  10. bear — the animal
  11. staff — a stick
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. kid — child
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bear — the animal
  16. staff — employees
  17. game — wild animals
  18. capital — a city
  19. race — the arms race
  20. lean — to bend
  21. key — in music
  22. capital — money
  23. kid — to tease
  24. key — the most important part

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