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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. squash — to crush
  4. club — a group
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. pit — in a race
  7. game — a match
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. squash — the sport
  11. march — the month
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. capital — money
  15. march — music
  16. pit — a hole
  17. game — wild animals
  18. club — for golf
  19. capital — a city
  20. club — for dancing
  21. march — the month
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. arm — part of the body

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