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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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468
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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  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. stick — a piece of wood
  2. fall — to drop
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. pit — a hole
  5. object — to protest
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. pitch — completely
  10. capital — money
  11. tube — a container
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. cold — an illness
  14. pit — in a race
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. object — an aim
  17. fall — to drop
  18. cold — not warm
  19. object — a thing
  20. tube — the underground
  21. fall — the season
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. capital — a city
  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