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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. capital — a city
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. rock — music
  5. race — the arms race
  6. net — in sport
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. ground — the earth
  9. net — for catching
  10. rush — hurry
  11. net — after costs
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. capital — money
  14. field — for sport
  15. race — humankind
  16. ground — crushed
  17. race — a contest
  18. bore — to drill
  19. field — a subject
  20. bore — to tire
  21. rock — a stone
  22. ground — a position
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. field — farmland

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