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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. capital — a city
  4. shower — rain
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. shower — to wash
  9. pop — soda
  10. pop — music
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. sharp — clever
  14. pop — to visit
  15. pass — a permit
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. bulb — for light
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. capital — money
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bulb — for light
  24. pass — to spend time

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