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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.

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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. capital — money
  3. field — a subject
  4. mate — to breed
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. field — for sport
  7. bat — the animal
  8. pitch — completely
  9. bank — for money
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. capital — a city
  14. mate — a friend
  15. mate — a partner
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. field — farmland
  20. rush — hurry
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. bank — of a river
  24. bat — for baseball

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