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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. sharp — clever
  4. capital — money
  5. club — for golf
  6. club — a group
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. race — a contest
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. bore — to drill
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. rush — hurry
  16. capital — a city
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. club — for dancing
  20. race — the arms race
  21. race — humankind
  22. bore — to tire
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. bowl — a football final

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