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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — money
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. date — the fruit
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. hand — in cards
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. last — final
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. last — finally
  18. hand — help
  19. capital — a city
  20. pitch — completely
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. sharp — clever

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