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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. capital — money
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. season — in sport
  6. sharp — clever
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. season — of the year
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. capital — a city
  12. spring — a coil
  13. mug — a face
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. spring — the season
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. spring — of water
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. pitch — completely
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. mug — a cup
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. cabinet — ministers

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