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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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468
Word bank
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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. season — of the year
  4. tear — from crying
  5. degree — from a university
  6. pit — a hole
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. degree — an amount
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. wound — an injury
  11. season — in sport
  12. pit — in a race
  13. capital — money
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — to rip
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. capital — a city
  19. degree — temperature
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. pitch — completely
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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