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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  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 city
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. face — to point toward
  6. bound — tied together
  7. face — to confront
  8. date — the fruit
  9. club — for dancing
  10. ball — a great time
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. bound — obliged
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. ball — a dance
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. club — for golf
  19. bound — certain
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. club — a group
  23. face — part of the head
  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