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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: fine · band · chest · pitcher · capital · fall · racket · sharp

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. band — a music group
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. band — a ring
  8. capital — money
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fine — all right
  14. capital — a city
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. fall — the season
  18. sharp — clever
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. chest — of your body
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. chest — of your body
  23. chest — a box
  24. fine — high quality

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