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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. field — farmland
  3. bound — obliged
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. tear — from crying
  6. capital — a city
  7. ground — crushed
  8. ball — a great time
  9. capital — money
  10. ground — a position
  11. bound — certain
  12. mark — a grade
  13. ground — the earth
  14. bulb — for light
  15. bulb — for light
  16. tear — to rip
  17. ball — a dance
  18. bound — tied together
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. field — a subject
  21. field — for sport
  22. tear — from crying
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. capital — a big letter

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