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

Word bank: deal · ground · capital · land · jam · cap · temple · kick

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. ground — the earth
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. ground — crushed
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. capital — money
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. deal — to handle
  10. kick — in football
  11. cap — a hat
  12. cap — a lid
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. land — a country
  17. ground — a position
  18. land — ground
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. capital — a city
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. land — to come down

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