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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. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. squash — to crush
  5. pop — soda
  6. pop — to visit
  7. race — a contest
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. content — the amount
  11. capital — money
  12. rush — hurry
  13. race — the arms race
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. squash — the sport
  18. capital — a city
  19. race — humankind
  20. pop — music
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. content — happy
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. leaves — to go away

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