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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 120 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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. wake — a trail
  3. mug — a face
  4. mug — a cup
  5. capital — money
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. pitch — completely
  12. capital — a city
  13. squash — to crush
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. pit — in a race
  16. squash — the sport
  17. prune — to trim
  18. chair — a leader
  19. pit — a hole
  20. prune — to trim
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. mug — to rob
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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