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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 black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. bound — tied together
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. bear — the animal
  8. capital — a city
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. bound — obliged
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. net — for catching
  14. bound — certain
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. pitch — completely
  17. net — in sport
  18. net — after costs
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. rush — hurry
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. capital — money

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