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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. fine — all right
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. race — the arms race
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. spring — the season
  11. root — the cause
  12. race — humankind
  13. pass — a permit
  14. spring — of water
  15. race — a contest
  16. capital — a city
  17. pitch — completely
  18. fine — high quality
  19. root — of a word
  20. root — of a plant
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. capital — money
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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