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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. spring — of water
  3. capital — a city
  4. staff — employees
  5. bark — to shout
  6. pop — music
  7. staff — employees
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. net — after costs
  11. ground — the earth
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. pop — to visit
  14. pit — in a race
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. pop — soda
  17. net — for catching
  18. ground — crushed
  19. spring — the season
  20. ground — a position
  21. staff — a stick
  22. pit — a hole
  23. net — in sport
  24. capital — money

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