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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. sharp — clever
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. capital — a city
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. ground — the earth
  8. ground — crushed
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bulb — for light
  13. firm — a company
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. object — a thing
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. ground — a position
  18. object — an aim
  19. capital — money
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. object — to protest
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. firm — steady
  24. sharp — with an edge

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