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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. spring — of water
  3. club — for golf
  4. pitch — completely
  5. fork — in a road
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. spring — the season
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. spring — a coil
  10. capital — a city
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. kick — in football
  14. bass — the fish
  15. club — a group
  16. capital — money
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. bass — low music
  19. ball — a great time
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. club — for dancing
  23. ball — a dance
  24. pitch — a sports field

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