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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. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. scale — size or range
  4. face — to point toward
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. capital — money
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. stand — to bear
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. face — part of the head
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. capital — a city
  14. face — to confront
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. mine — for digging
  18. degree — from a university
  19. degree — temperature
  20. scale — in music
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. ball — a dance
  23. degree — an amount
  24. ball — a great time

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