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

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. stand — to bear
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. clip — a video
  5. present — the time now
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. present — there
  9. rest — a break
  10. rest — what's left
  11. pitch — completely
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. clip — to cut
  14. present — a gift
  15. rest — what's left
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. capital — money
  18. clip — for paper

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