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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 hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. ball — a dance
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. ball — a great time
  9. capital — a city
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bat — the animal
  12. pitch — completely
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. land — a country
  17. land — ground
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. stock — shares
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. bulb — for light
  22. stock — goods
  23. capital — money
  24. land — to come down

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