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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. capital — a city
  3. drill — the tool
  4. capital — money
  5. land — to come down
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. land — ground
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. pitch — completely
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. drill — army training
  15. snap — to click
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. mug — a cup
  19. drill — a practice
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. land — a country
  22. mug — a face
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. mug — to rob

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