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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. ground — the earth
  3. capital — money
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. club — a group
  6. race — humankind
  7. spring — the season
  8. race — the arms race
  9. snap — to click
  10. spring — of water
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. capital — a city
  13. club — for dancing
  14. net — for catching
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. spring — a coil
  17. race — a contest
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. club — for golf
  20. ground — crushed
  21. net — in sport
  22. net — after costs
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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