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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. cold — an illness
  3. club — for golf
  4. board — a committee
  5. capital — a city
  6. craft — boats
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. craft — a skill
  10. swing — music
  11. lean — to bend
  12. lean — thin
  13. club — a group
  14. board — to get on
  15. club — for dancing
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. swing — in golf
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. swing — to play on
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cold — not warm
  24. pitch — completely

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