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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. present — there
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. pop — soda
  6. pop — to visit
  7. present — a gift
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. pop — music
  10. content — happy
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. pass — a permit
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. content — the amount
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. present — the time now

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