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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. ground — crushed
  3. ground — the earth
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. capital — money
  6. perch — the fish
  7. charge — electricity
  8. wind — moving air
  9. craft — a skill
  10. drill — a practice
  11. stock — shares
  12. capital — a city
  13. ground — a position
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. stock — goods
  17. charge — a price
  18. drill — army training
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. craft — boats
  22. charge — in control
  23. drill — the tool
  24. stock — a soup base

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