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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. capital — a city
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. ball — a dance
  8. key — for a lock
  9. ball — a great time
  10. rest — what's left
  11. season — in sport
  12. rest — what's left
  13. mate — a friend
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. key — the most important part
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. key — in music
  18. capital — money
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. season — of the year
  21. vault — a safe
  22. rest — a break
  23. mate — a partner
  24. pitch — completely

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