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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. spell — letters
  3. capital — a city
  4. capital — money
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. wake — a trail
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. face — to confront
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. face — to point toward
  13. pit — in a race
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. deal — to handle
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. mine — for digging
  19. pit — a hole
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. spell — a short time
  23. spell — magic
  24. face — part of the head

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