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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 116 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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. charge — in control
  4. charge — electricity
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. spring — a coil
  7. capital — money
  8. pitch — completely
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. sharp — clever
  11. mark — a grade
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. squash — the sport
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. squash — to crush
  16. spring — the season
  17. rash — a series
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. mark — a trace
  20. rash — hasty
  21. charge — a price
  22. spring — of water
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. sharp — with an edge

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