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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. bass — the fish
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. stand — to bear
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. capital — a city
  8. bass — low music
  9. key — for a lock
  10. capital — money
  11. key — in music
  12. cold — not warm
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. saw — the tool
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. cold — an illness
  20. key — the most important part
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. content — the amount
  23. content — happy
  24. saw — the tool

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