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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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468
Word bank
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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. season — in sport
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. bound — obliged
  6. capital — a city
  7. perch — the fish
  8. bass — low music
  9. bass — the fish
  10. bound — tied together
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. lean — to bend
  13. tube — the underground
  14. pitch — completely
  15. capital — money
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. season — of the year
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. bound — certain
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. tube — a container
  24. lean — thin

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