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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. capital — money
  3. pop — soda
  4. spell — magic
  5. capital — a city
  6. spell — a short time
  7. net — in sport
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. spell — letters
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. net — after costs
  13. chair — a leader
  14. ground — a position
  15. sharp — clever
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. net — for catching
  18. ground — the earth
  19. pop — to visit
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. ground — crushed
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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