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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 120 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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. land — to come down
  3. track — a song
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. track — a path
  6. capital — a city
  7. face — part of the head
  8. capital — money
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. land — a country
  12. swing — in golf
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. kid — to tease
  15. face — to point toward
  16. swing — music
  17. kid — child
  18. track — to keep track
  19. face — to confront
  20. fine — high quality
  21. land — ground
  22. swing — to play on
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. fine — all right

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