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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. capital — a city
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. mark — a trace
  5. mark — a grade
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. last — final
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. pop — soda
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. pop — music
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. last — finally
  16. last — to go on
  17. capital — money
  18. pop — to visit

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