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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. club — for golf
  3. club — a group
  4. mark — a trace
  5. club — for dancing
  6. firm — steady
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. pit — in a race
  9. sharp — clever
  10. firm — decided
  11. mark — a grade
  12. firm — a company
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — an illness
  16. game — wild animals
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. capital — a city
  19. game — a match
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. pit — a hole
  22. cold — not warm
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. sharp — exactly

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