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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  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. pop — music
  2. clip — for paper
  3. bore — to drill
  4. capital — a city
  5. bore — to tire
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — what's left
  8. pop — soda
  9. bulb — for light
  10. ground — a position
  11. clip — a video
  12. ground — the earth
  13. pop — to visit
  14. ground — crushed
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. bulb — for light
  19. capital — money
  20. kid — to tease
  21. clip — to cut
  22. rest — a break
  23. kid — child
  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