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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 · firm · chest · fine · bat · suit · pitch · lean

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. capital — money
  3. lean — to bend
  4. chest — of your body
  5. firm — a company
  6. lean — thin
  7. suit — clothes
  8. suit — in cards
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. firm — decided
  11. capital — a city
  12. fine — all right
  13. pitch — completely
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. chest — of your body
  19. suit — to fit
  20. chest — a box
  21. firm — steady
  22. fine — high quality
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — for baseball

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