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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 don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. spell — magic
  3. spell — letters
  4. capital — a city
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. spell — a short time
  7. last — finally
  8. last — to go on
  9. last — final
  10. capital — money
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. face — to confront
  14. pitch — completely
  15. pit — in a race
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. fine — all right
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. face — part of the head
  22. fine — high quality
  23. pit — a hole
  24. face — to point toward

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