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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. face — part of the head
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. chip — to eat
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. face — to confront
  9. chip — for betting
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bat — the animal
  14. chair — a leader
  15. capital — money
  16. pitch — completely
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. face — to point toward
  19. date — the fruit
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. capital — a city
  24. chair — a professorship

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