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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. spring — of water
  3. ground — the earth
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. bat — the animal
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. ground — crushed
  9. capital — a city
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. spring — the season
  13. ground — a position
  14. club — a group
  15. chip — for betting
  16. can — a tin
  17. can — to be able to
  18. lean — to bend
  19. chip — to eat
  20. club — for golf
  21. can — a tin
  22. spring — a coil
  23. capital — money
  24. lean — thin

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