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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. game — wild animals
  3. saw — the tool
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. capital — a city
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. net — in sport
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. capital — money
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. wind — moving air
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. net — for catching
  19. saw — the tool
  20. net — after costs
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — a match
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. coach — a trainer

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