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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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  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. capital — a big letter
  2. bear — the animal
  3. net — in sport
  4. net — after costs
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. ground — the earth
  8. plane — a tool
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. drill — the tool
  12. drill — a practice
  13. ground — crushed
  14. bear — the animal
  15. drill — army training
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. ground — a position
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. capital — a city
  22. net — for catching
  23. bowl — a football final
  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