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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 116 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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. last — to go on
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. pop — music
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. capital — money
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. ground — crushed
  9. capital — a city
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. last — final
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. pop — soda
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. ground — the earth
  16. bass — low music
  17. last — finally
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. lie — to recline
  20. hand — help
  21. hand — in cards
  22. pop — to visit
  23. snap — to click
  24. bass — the fish

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