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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. capital — money
  4. game — wild animals
  5. stock — shares
  6. stock — goods
  7. rash — hasty
  8. game — a match
  9. club — for dancing
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. club — for golf
  15. club — a group
  16. rash — a series
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. pound — a weight
  19. pit — a hole
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. pit — in a race
  24. mine — for digging

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