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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. capital — money
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. capital — a city
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. craft — boats
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. mate — to breed
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. ball — a great time
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. kid — to tease
  14. mate — a partner
  15. date — the fruit
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. pitch — completely
  18. ball — a dance
  19. craft — a skill
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. kid — child
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. capital — a big letter

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