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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bound — obliged
  4. capital — a city
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. ground — crushed
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. perch — the fish
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bound — certain
  15. capital — money
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. pitch — completely
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. ground — a position
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. ground — the earth
  23. bound — tied together
  24. perch — for a bird

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