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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  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. capital — a big letter
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. cue — a signal
  4. content — the amount
  5. bass — the fish
  6. bank — for money
  7. fall — to drop
  8. bank — for money
  9. content — happy
  10. cue — a hint
  11. bass — low music
  12. capital — a city
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. bank — of a river
  16. fall — the season
  17. cue — for pool
  18. pit — a hole
  19. pit — in a race
  20. fall — to drop
  21. pound — a weight
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. content — videos and posts
  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