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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 124 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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. mug — a cup
  3. game — wild animals
  4. capital — a city
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. bank — for money
  7. capital — money
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bank — for money
  10. mug — a face
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. pitch — completely
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. wake — a trail
  19. bank — of a river
  20. wax — to grow
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. mug — to rob
  24. hand — help

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