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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. perch — the fish
  3. ground — crushed
  4. capital — a city
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. can — a tin
  7. ground — a position
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. hand — in cards
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — the tool
  20. ground — the earth
  21. capital — money
  22. can — to be able to
  23. can — a tin
  24. safe — out of danger

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