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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 120 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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. mate — to breed
  3. rock — music
  4. kick — in football
  5. rock — a stone
  6. capital — a city
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. tube — a container
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. mate — a friend
  11. tube — the underground
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. mate — a partner
  18. ball — a dance
  19. ball — a great time
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. shower — to wash
  22. capital — money
  23. shower — rain
  24. pitch — completely

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