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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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Word bank
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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: ball · spell · mouse · ground · pit · staff · row · capital

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. pit — in a race
  3. pit — a hole
  4. ball — a great time
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. staff — employees
  8. ground — the earth
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. capital — a city
  11. spell — magic
  12. ground — a position
  13. row — to paddle
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. capital — money
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. spell — a short time
  18. ball — a dance
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. staff — a stick
  21. staff — employees
  22. row — a line
  23. ground — crushed
  24. spell — letters

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