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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. ball — a dance
  3. date — the fruit
  4. game — wild animals
  5. game — a match
  6. present — a gift
  7. key — in music
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. race — the arms race
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. key — the most important part
  14. ball — a great time
  15. capital — money
  16. present — there
  17. race — a contest
  18. present — the time now
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. race — humankind
  22. capital — a city
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. key — for a lock

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