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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. snap — to click
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. capital — a city
  8. mine — for digging
  9. spring — of water
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. spring — a coil
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. pitch — completely
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. capital — money
  19. mark — a grade
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. content — happy
  22. mark — a trace
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. spring — the season

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