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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. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. capital — money
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. roll — a cake
  5. stock — shares
  6. scale — in music
  7. cue — a hint
  8. cue — for pool
  9. capital — a city
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. scale — size or range
  12. wake — a trail
  13. spring — the season
  14. pitch — completely
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. spring — a coil
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. stock — goods
  21. cue — a signal
  22. spring — of water
  23. roll — a list
  24. wake — before a funeral

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