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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. capital — a city
  3. rash — a series
  4. ground — crushed
  5. net — after costs
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. net — in sport
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. capital — money
  10. rash — hasty
  11. bound — tied together
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. court — for sport
  14. net — for catching
  15. snap — to click
  16. court — of law
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bound — certain
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. court — of a king
  21. wind — moving air
  22. ground — a position
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. bound — obliged

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