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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 120 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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. capital — a city
  3. club — for golf
  4. mug — a cup
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. spell — letters
  8. game — a match
  9. race — humankind
  10. club — for dancing
  11. row — to paddle
  12. spell — a short time
  13. game — wild animals
  14. race — a contest
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. row — a line
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. mug — a face
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. race — the arms race
  21. mug — to rob
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. club — a group
  24. capital — money

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