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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. pitch — completely
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. squash — to crush
  6. bound — obliged
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. capital — a city
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. chip — for betting
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. chip — to eat
  18. squash — the sport
  19. bound — certain
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. wake — a trail
  24. bound — tied together

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