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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. pound — a weight
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. capital — a city
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — moving air
  10. chip — for betting
  11. field — farmland
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. field — a subject
  15. pitch — completely
  16. plane — a tool
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. capital — money
  22. field — for sport
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. chip — to eat

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