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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. rest — what's left
  3. rest — a break
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. swing — in golf
  6. capital — a city
  7. content — happy
  8. ground — the earth
  9. pass — a permit
  10. ground — a position
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. content — the amount
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. ground — crushed
  16. swing — music
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — the season
  19. fall — to drop
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. rest — what's left
  22. swing — to play on
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. capital — money

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