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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. spell — letters
  3. track — a path
  4. can — to be able to
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. can — a tin
  7. prune — to trim
  8. roll — a list
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. prune — to trim
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. capital — money
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. pitch — completely
  17. capital — a city
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. track — a song
  20. track — to keep track
  21. spell — magic
  22. roll — a cake
  23. spell — a short time
  24. can — a tin

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