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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. ball — a great time
  3. pound — a weight
  4. sharp — clever
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. bat — the animal
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. rush — hurry
  14. ball — a dance
  15. lean — thin
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. capital — money
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. craft — boats
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. lean — to bend
  23. craft — a skill
  24. bat — in an idiom

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