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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. clip — a video
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. rash — a series
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. fork — in a road
  11. staff — employees
  12. pitch — completely
  13. capital — a city
  14. clip — to cut
  15. sharp — clever
  16. capital — money
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. staff — a stick
  19. staff — employees
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. date — the fruit
  22. rash — hasty
  23. clip — for paper
  24. date — on the calendar

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