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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 116 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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. shower — rain
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — final
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. capital — money
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. pitch — completely
  22. last — finally
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. shower — to wash

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