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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. scale — in music
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. scale — size or range
  5. track — to keep track
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. lie — to recline
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. track — a path
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — to rip
  13. bass — low music
  14. shower — to wash
  15. capital — money
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. bass — the fish
  18. shower — rain
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. tear — from crying
  23. track — a song
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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