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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. can — a tin
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. capital — money
  6. ground — a position
  7. present — the time now
  8. capital — a city
  9. march — the month
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. file — a tool
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — a contest
  14. can — to be able to
  15. race — humankind
  16. present — a gift
  17. march — the month
  18. can — a tin
  19. present — there
  20. ground — the earth
  21. file — a document
  22. ground — crushed
  23. file — a line of people
  24. march — music

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