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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. cue — a hint
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. capital — a city
  8. hand — in cards
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. sharp — clever
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. game — wild animals
  14. game — a match
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. hand — help
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. chest — a box
  23. cue — for pool
  24. cue — a signal

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