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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. content — the amount
  3. pitch — completely
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. current — electric
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. current — of water
  9. spring — the season
  10. spring — a coil
  11. content — happy
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. capital — a city
  15. spring — of water
  16. last — final
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. current — happening now
  19. last — finally
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. capital — money
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. last — to go on
  24. content — videos and posts

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