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

Word bank: kid · cell · branch · pitch · cue · capital

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. kid — to tease
  4. capital — money
  5. pitch — completely
  6. cell — a phone
  7. cell — in biology
  8. cue — a hint
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. cue — for pool
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. capital — a city
  13. branch — a division
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. cue — a signal
  18. kid — child

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