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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 116 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: cold · tube · capital · pitch · safe · rest · leaves · kid

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. pitch — completely
  3. tube — a container
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. kid — child
  6. rest — what's left
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. kid — to tease
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. capital — a city
  13. capital — money
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. cold — not warm
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. rest — a break
  18. rest — what's left
  19. tube — the underground
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. cold — an illness
  24. tube — in a tire

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