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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: content · capital · season · lie · race · pitch · drill · ruler

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. 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. pitch — a sports field
  2. capital — money
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. pitch — completely
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. capital — a city
  8. race — a contest
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. drill — army training
  11. drill — a practice
  12. drill — the tool
  13. content — happy
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. race — humankind
  17. season — of the year
  18. content — the amount
  19. lie — to recline
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. season — in sport
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. 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