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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 ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. land — ground
  3. deal — to handle
  4. ground — crushed
  5. bark — to shout
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. capital — money
  8. rock — music
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. present — a gift
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. content — the amount
  13. capital — a city
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. content — happy
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. rock — a stone
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. land — a country
  21. present — the time now
  22. ground — a position
  23. present — there
  24. land — to come down

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