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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  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. race — a contest
  2. capital — a city
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. swing — music
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. sharp — clever
  9. deal — to handle
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. swing — to play on
  12. track — to keep track
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. swing — in golf
  15. fork — in a road
  16. track — a song
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. capital — money
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. track — a path
  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