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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: deal · race · capital · perch · saw · ground · tube · cabinet

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. capital — money
  3. perch — the fish
  4. race — the arms race
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. ground — the earth
  7. ground — a position
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. tube — a container
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. capital — a city
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. deal — to handle
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. race — humankind
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. tube — the underground
  18. ground — crushed
  19. saw — the tool
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. saw — the tool
  22. race — a contest
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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