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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. capital — money
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. cap — a lid
  7. game — a match
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. dip — to sink
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — an injury
  12. capital — a city
  13. plane — a tool
  14. cap — of ice
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. cap — a hat
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. game — wild animals
  21. mine — for digging
  22. rush — hurry
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. dip — a sauce

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