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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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. capital — a city
  3. last — to go on
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. track — a song
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. track — to keep track
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. last — finally
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. lean — to bend
  12. lean — thin
  13. pit — a hole
  14. race — the arms race
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. pit — in a race
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. last — final
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. race — a contest
  22. race — humankind
  23. capital — money
  24. temple — a place of worship

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