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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: jam · face · capital · field · spring · fine · ground · dip

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. fine — high quality
  3. spring — a coil
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. face — part of the head
  6. ground — crushed
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. dip — to sink
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. capital — a city
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. spring — the season
  13. ground — the earth
  14. field — farmland
  15. capital — money
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. field — for sport
  20. face — to point toward
  21. fine — all right
  22. field — a subject
  23. spring — of water
  24. face — to confront

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