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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. lean — to bend
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. lean — thin
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. capital — money
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. capital — a city
  10. present — the time now
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. swing — to play on
  13. swing — in golf
  14. swing — music
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. bat — the animal
  17. mug — to rob
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. mug — a cup
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. present — a gift
  23. mug — a face
  24. present — there

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