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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: net · mine · game · capital · bear · root · rule · bat

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. net — in sport
  3. mine — for digging
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. root — the cause
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. net — after costs
  8. rule — government
  9. root — of a word
  10. net — for catching
  11. root — of a plant
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. capital — money
  14. bat — the animal
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. rule — a law
  19. capital — a city
  20. game — wild animals
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. game — a match
  24. mine — belonging to me

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