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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 120 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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. capital — money
  4. ground — crushed
  5. rush — hurry
  6. capital — a city
  7. cell — in biology
  8. ground — the earth
  9. bark — to shout
  10. lean — to bend
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. lean — thin
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. ground — a position
  17. cell — a phone
  18. capital — a big letter

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