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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  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. race — a contest
  2. capital — a city
  3. pop — to visit
  4. pop — soda
  5. craft — a skill
  6. pop — music
  7. land — ground
  8. land — a country
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. cap — a hat
  11. capital — money
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. fine — high quality
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. fine — all right
  16. ground — crushed
  17. race — the arms race
  18. land — to come down
  19. craft — boats
  20. ground — a position
  21. race — humankind
  22. cap — of ice
  23. cap — a lid
  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