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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 116 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. ball — a dance
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. fine — high quality
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. hand — in cards
  7. capital — a city
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. race — a contest
  13. capital — money
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. hand — help
  16. ball — a great time
  17. fine — all right
  18. race — the arms race
  19. present — a gift
  20. present — the time now
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. race — humankind
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. pitcher — a jug

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