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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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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: racket · mark · capital · press · race · pitch · sharp · tear

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. mark — a grade
  3. race — a contest
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. tear — to rip
  7. tear — from crying
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. press — newspapers
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. pitch — completely
  12. capital — a city
  13. race — humankind
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. press — a publisher
  16. tear — from crying
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. race — the arms race
  22. press — to push
  23. capital — money
  24. sharp — clever

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