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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. toast — bread
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. bat — the animal
  12. stand — to bear
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. season — of the year
  15. season — in sport
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. capital — a city
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. snap — to click
  24. capital — money

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