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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
468
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 · wake · pitch · date · cap · sharp · face · stem

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. cap — a lid
  3. face — to point toward
  4. capital — a city
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. cap — of ice
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. cap — a hat
  9. date — the fruit
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. capital — money
  13. face — part of the head
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. sharp — clever
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. stem — to come from
  19. pitch — completely
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. wake — a trail
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. face — to confront
  24. wake — before a funeral

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