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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. deal — to handle
  4. net — in sport
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. season — in sport
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. bark — to shout
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. pound — a weight
  13. club — for dancing
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. capital — a city
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. net — after costs
  19. net — for catching
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. club — a group
  23. season — of the year
  24. club — for golf

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