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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 124 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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. ground — a position
  3. spring — the season
  4. prune — to trim
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. spring — of water
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. cue — a hint
  13. ground — the earth
  14. spring — a coil
  15. cue — a signal
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. capital — money
  18. plane — a tool
  19. prune — to trim
  20. cue — for pool
  21. bass — the fish
  22. bass — low music
  23. ground — crushed
  24. capital — a big letter

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