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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. scale — size or range
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. game — a match
  5. mate — a partner
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. capital — a city
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. mate — a friend
  13. capital — money
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. game — wild animals
  16. scale — in music
  17. mate — to breed
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. deal — to handle
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. pitch — completely
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. snap — to click

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