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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. root — of a plant
  3. ground — the earth
  4. pit — in a race
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. capital — money
  7. cue — a signal
  8. pit — a hole
  9. ground — a position
  10. capital — a city
  11. shower — to wash
  12. cue — for pool
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. cue — a hint
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. shower — rain
  17. fall — to drop
  18. root — the cause
  19. ground — crushed
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. fall — the season
  23. fall — to drop
  24. root — of a word

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