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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: pit · bear · mug · wind · capital · cold · can · stand

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. mug — a cup
  3. mug — a face
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. can — a tin
  7. bear — the animal
  8. stand — to bear
  9. bear — the animal
  10. pit — in a race
  11. wind — moving air
  12. cold — not warm
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. pit — a hole
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. can — a tin
  20. cold — an illness
  21. capital — money
  22. can — to be able to
  23. mug — to rob
  24. capital — a city

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