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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  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. sharp — exactly
  2. capital — money
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. face — to point toward
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. swing — in golf
  8. march — music
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. capital — a city
  11. staff — a stick
  12. swing — music
  13. face — to confront
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. swing — to play on
  16. march — the month
  17. face — part of the head
  18. march — the month
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. wake — a trail
  21. staff — employees
  22. sharp — clever
  23. staff — employees
  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