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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. ball — a dance
  4. ball — a great time
  5. capital — a city
  6. band — a music group
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. craft — boats
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. pound — a weight
  15. capital — money
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. craft — a skill
  18. season — in sport
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. pitch — completely
  22. season — of the year
  23. band — a ring
  24. capital — a big letter

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