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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. capital — money
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. cue — a hint
  5. stock — shares
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. race — the arms race
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. capital — a city
  10. race — humankind
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. cue — a signal
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. season — in sport
  15. cue — for pool
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. race — a contest
  20. stock — goods
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. season — of the year

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