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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 116 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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. kid — child
  4. capital — money
  5. pop — to visit
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. track — a song
  8. capital — a city
  9. pop — music
  10. track — to keep track
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. spring — a coil
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. spring — of water
  15. track — a path
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. spring — the season
  18. rush — hurry
  19. kid — to tease
  20. pop — soda
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wound — an injury

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