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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 124 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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. dip — to sink
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. rash — hasty
  6. craft — boats
  7. mate — a partner
  8. chest — of your body
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ground — crushed
  14. mate — to breed
  15. capital — a city
  16. rash — a series
  17. chest — a box
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. chest — of your body
  20. plane — a tool
  21. craft — a skill
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. capital — money
  24. mate — a friend

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