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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. capital — money
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. ground — crushed
  7. vault — a safe
  8. club — for golf
  9. club — a group
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. ground — the earth
  14. hand — help
  15. ground — a position
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. sharp — clever
  18. pass — a permit
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. hand — in cards
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. capital — a city
  24. pass — to spend time

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