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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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. scale — size or range
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. net — for catching
  5. net — after costs
  6. net — in sport
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. bass — the fish
  9. present — the time now
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. capital — a city
  15. shower — rain
  16. scale — in music
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. present — a gift
  19. capital — money
  20. bass — low music
  21. shower — to wash
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. present — there
  24. hide — animal skin

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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