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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. prune — to trim
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — money
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. prune — to trim
  10. snap — to click
  11. sharp — clever
  12. bass — the fish
  13. mine — for digging
  14. pop — soda
  15. pop — to visit
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. pop — music
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bass — low music
  24. snap — to speak sharply

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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