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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fall · race · wake · pitch · pop · capital

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. wake — a trail
  3. race — humankind
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. pitch — completely
  8. race — a contest
  9. pop — soda
  10. fall — to drop
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a city
  13. fall — to drop
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. pop — music
  17. fall — the season
  18. race — the arms race

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