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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 116 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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. capital — a city
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. press — a publisher
  5. hand — in cards
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. stock — shares
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. snap — to click
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. lie — to recline
  16. press — newspapers
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. hand — help
  19. pitch — completely
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. capital — money
  22. press — to push
  23. stock — goods
  24. safe — a strongbox

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