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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. bat — the animal
  4. capital — money
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. charge — in control
  12. toast — bread
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. bore — to drill
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. sharp — clever
  17. saw — the tool
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. bore — to tire
  22. charge — a price
  23. pitch — completely
  24. charge — electricity

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