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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. capital — money
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. ground — crushed
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. spell — letters
  7. can — to be able to
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. dip — to sink
  10. spell — a short time
  11. capital — a city
  12. ground — the earth
  13. bore — to tire
  14. bore — to drill
  15. ground — a position
  16. row — a line
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. can — a tin
  19. row — to paddle
  20. spell — magic
  21. can — a tin
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. cabinet — ministers

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