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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 116 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's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. capital — money
  3. fork — in a road
  4. scale — in music
  5. spring — the season
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. mug — a cup
  9. mug — to rob
  10. spring — of water
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. spring — a coil
  16. capital — a city
  17. mug — a face
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. scale — size or range

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