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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. bass — low music
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. bass — the fish
  5. squash — to crush
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. land — a country
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. land — ground
  10. capital — a city
  11. pitch — completely
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. net — after costs
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. net — in sport
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. net — for catching
  18. squash — the sport
  19. fork — in a road
  20. land — to come down
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. pound — a weight

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