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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. track — to keep track
  3. ground — a position
  4. scale — size or range
  5. capital — money
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. sharp — clever
  8. track — a song
  9. press — a publisher
  10. scale — in music
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. club — for dancing
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. press — to push
  15. club — a group
  16. press — newspapers
  17. ground — the earth
  18. club — for golf
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. ball — a great time
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. ground — crushed
  23. ball — a dance
  24. track — a path

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