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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. fall — the season
  4. track — to keep track
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. scale — size or range
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. capital — a city
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. track — a song
  17. chip — to eat
  18. track — a path
  19. fall — to drop
  20. chip — for betting
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. capital — money
  24. scale — in 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