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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. rush — hurry
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. pound — a weight
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. field — farmland
  8. field — a subject
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. chair — a leader
  12. capital — a city
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. pass — a permit
  19. field — for sport
  20. squash — the sport
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. squash — to crush

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