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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. capital — money
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. capital — a city
  9. ground — a position
  10. ground — crushed
  11. fork — in a road
  12. snap — to click
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. scale — size or range
  17. ground — the earth
  18. race — a contest
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. scale — in music
  23. race — humankind
  24. race — the arms race

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