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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. capital — a city
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. game — wild animals
  5. net — in sport
  6. pit — in a race
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. pitch — completely
  11. charge — a price
  12. charge — electricity
  13. net — for catching
  14. pit — a hole
  15. capital — money
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. net — after costs
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. deal — to handle
  21. game — a match
  22. charge — in control
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — a sick person

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