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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. chair — a leader
  4. capital — money
  5. pitch — completely
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. mug — a cup
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. rash — a series
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. drill — a practice
  14. capital — a city
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. mug — to rob
  19. drill — the tool
  20. rash — hasty
  21. mug — a face
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. wake — a trail
  24. drill — army training

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