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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. capital — a city
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. shower — to wash
  10. fine — high quality
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. pit — in a race
  13. shower — rain
  14. squash — to crush
  15. pit — a hole
  16. fine — all right
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — the earth
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. ground — a position
  22. capital — money
  23. saw — the tool
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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