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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. ground — a position
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. saw — the tool
  7. march — the month
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. ground — the earth
  10. march — music
  11. wake — a trail
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. cell — a phone
  15. saw — the tool
  16. cell — in biology
  17. capital — a city
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. ground — crushed
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. dip — to sink
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. capital — money
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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