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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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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. pit — in a race
  3. tear — from crying
  4. pit — a hole
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. board — a committee
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. board — to get on
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. pitch — completely
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying
  19. capital — a city
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. cold — not warm
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. fan — a supporter

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