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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. race — humankind
  3. content — the amount
  4. capital — money
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. swing — music
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. content — happy
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. race — the arms race
  14. scale — in music
  15. wax — to grow
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. capital — a city
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. swing — to play on
  20. dip — to sink
  21. race — a contest
  22. scale — size or range
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. swing — in golf

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