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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 120 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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. ground — a position
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. pitch — completely
  5. capital — a city
  6. swing — music
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. ground — crushed
  11. capital — money
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. ground — the earth
  14. swing — to play on
  15. snap — to click
  16. net — in sport
  17. net — after costs
  18. swing — in golf
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. rule — government
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. net — for catching

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