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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. key — in music
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. shower — rain
  5. key — the most important part
  6. sharp — clever
  7. spring — of water
  8. capital — a city
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. pit — in a race
  12. spring — a coil
  13. ground — crushed
  14. press — to push
  15. press — a publisher
  16. shower — to wash
  17. spring — the season
  18. ground — a position
  19. capital — money
  20. pit — a hole
  21. key — for a lock
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. press — newspapers
  24. ground — the earth

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