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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. sharp — clever
  5. wound — an injury
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. rash — a series
  8. ground — the earth
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. ground — a position
  11. capital — a city
  12. ground — crushed
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. wound — an injury
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. capital — money
  19. roll — a list
  20. vault — a safe
  21. snap — to click
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. roll — a cake

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