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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. row — a line
  4. row — to paddle
  5. prune — to trim
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — employees
  10. firm — steady
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. staff — a stick
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. firm — a company
  17. capital — a city
  18. pitch — completely
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. firm — decided
  24. row — a quarrel

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