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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. wind — moving air
  3. ground — a position
  4. capital — money
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. ground — crushed
  7. charge — in control
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. ground — the earth
  11. charge — electricity
  12. wind — moving air
  13. capital — a city
  14. wake — a trail
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. charge — a price
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. season — in sport
  21. land — a country
  22. land — ground
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. season — of the year

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