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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 ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. capital — a city
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. mate — a friend
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. prune — to trim
  8. capital — money
  9. kid — to tease
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. mate — to breed
  12. hand — help
  13. ground — crushed
  14. plane — a tool
  15. mate — a partner
  16. prune — to trim
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. hand — in cards
  22. kid — child
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. ground — a position

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