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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. capital — a city
  5. fall — the season
  6. row — to paddle
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. object — an aim
  11. fall — to drop
  12. date — the fruit
  13. object — a thing
  14. ground — the earth
  15. net — after costs
  16. capital — money
  17. ground — a position
  18. net — for catching
  19. row — a line
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. fall — to drop
  23. object — to protest
  24. net — in sport

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