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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. club — for dancing
  4. club — a group
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. pit — a hole
  7. capital — money
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. fall — to drop
  10. fall — to drop
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. club — for golf
  13. fall — the season
  14. pit — in a race
  15. chip — to eat
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. ground — a position
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. chip — for betting
  20. ground — the earth
  21. capital — a city
  22. stem — to come from
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. chip — in a computer

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