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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: capital · coach · wake · tear · present · racket

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. tear — from crying
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. capital — a city
  6. present — there
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. tear — from crying
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. capital — money
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. tear — to rip
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. present — a gift
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. present — the time now
  18. wake — a trail

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