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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. wound — an injury
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. saw — the tool
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. pit — in a race
  10. land — a country
  11. wake — a trail
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. capital — a city
  14. land — to come down
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. pit — a hole
  17. saw — the tool
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. ball — a great time
  20. capital — money
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. wound — an injury
  24. ball — a dance

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