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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. ground — a position
  4. capital — a city
  5. fine — high quality
  6. last — final
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. last — finally
  9. ground — the earth
  10. last — to go on
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. lean — thin
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. lean — to bend
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. fine — all right
  19. wind — moving air
  20. capital — money
  21. ground — crushed
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. lean — to rest against

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