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

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. spring — a coil
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. race — the arms race
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. spring — of water
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. can — a tin
  11. capital — a city
  12. can — to be able to
  13. capital — money
  14. race — humankind
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. race — a contest
  17. spring — the season
  18. can — a tin

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