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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. capital — a city
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. bat — the animal
  8. capital — money
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. mark — a grade
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. mark — a trace
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. pound — a weight
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. pitcher — a jug

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