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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. pitch — completely
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. pass — a permit
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. capital — a city
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. capital — money
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. tube — a container
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. sharp — clever
  22. foot — a measure
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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