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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 120 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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. pit — a hole
  3. land — a country
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. chip — to eat
  6. chip — for betting
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. pit — in a race
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — money
  13. land — to come down
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. spring — a coil
  18. spring — the season
  19. land — ground
  20. spring — of water
  21. ground — the earth
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. ground — a position
  24. capital — a city

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