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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. capital — money
  5. club — for golf
  6. club — a group
  7. fine — all right
  8. capital — a city
  9. content — the amount
  10. press — a publisher
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. ground — a position
  13. march — the month
  14. content — happy
  15. pound — a weight
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. ground — crushed
  18. march — the month
  19. fine — high quality
  20. ground — the earth
  21. press — newspapers
  22. press — to push
  23. club — for dancing
  24. march — music

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