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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. capital — a city
  4. can — a tin
  5. shower — rain
  6. capital — money
  7. ball — a great time
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. ground — a position
  10. ground — the earth
  11. ground — crushed
  12. can — to be able to
  13. key — the most important part
  14. key — in music
  15. shower — to wash
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. key — for a lock
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. ball — a dance
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. can — a tin

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