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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  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. net — in sport
  2. capital — a city
  3. cap — of ice
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. capital — money
  6. snap — to click
  7. lean — thin
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. firm — a company
  10. pop — music
  11. firm — decided
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. pop — to visit
  14. cap — a lid
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. firm — steady
  18. lean — to bend
  19. mine — for digging
  20. cap — a hat
  21. net — after costs
  22. net — for catching
  23. pop — soda
  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