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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. capital — money
  3. track — a song
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. net — for catching
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. pop — music
  10. pop — soda
  11. spring — the season
  12. lie — to recline
  13. track — to keep track
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. capital — a city
  16. bore — to drill
  17. rule — government
  18. pop — to visit
  19. spring — a coil
  20. track — a path
  21. bore — to tire
  22. net — in sport
  23. rule — a law
  24. net — after costs

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