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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. race — the arms race
  3. race — a contest
  4. tube — the underground
  5. squash — the sport
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. ground — the earth
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. land — to come down
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. kid — to tease
  14. kid — child
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ground — a position
  17. land — a country
  18. race — humankind
  19. capital — a city
  20. land — ground
  21. squash — to crush
  22. tube — a container
  23. capital — money
  24. fan — to cool the air

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