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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: ground · staff · row · cap · bowl · capital · saw · drill

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. row — a line
  3. cap — a hat
  4. row — to paddle
  5. saw — the tool
  6. drill — army training
  7. capital — money
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. ground — a position
  11. cap — of ice
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. staff — employees
  14. staff — a stick
  15. cap — a lid
  16. ground — crushed
  17. ground — the earth
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. drill — a practice
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. drill — the tool
  23. saw — the tool
  24. staff — employees

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