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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · firm · bay · pitcher · file · toast · jam · last

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. last — to go on
  3. capital — a city
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. last — final
  6. file — a document
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. firm — steady
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. file — a tool
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. capital — money
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. firm — a company
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. last — finally
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. toast — bread
  20. firm — decided
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. file — a line of people
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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