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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. club — a group
  4. bound — certain
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. bound — tied together
  8. pitch — completely
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. bound — obliged
  11. row — a line
  12. cell — in biology
  13. capital — a city
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. cell — a phone
  18. club — for golf
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. capital — money
  22. row — to paddle
  23. club — for dancing
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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