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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: pitcher · fan · fine · capital · shower · root · key · pit

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. pit — a hole
  3. capital — a city
  4. key — for a lock
  5. fine — high quality
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. root — of a word
  8. pit — in a race
  9. shower — rain
  10. key — the most important part
  11. fine — all right
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. root — of a plant
  14. capital — money
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. root — the cause
  18. key — in music
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. shower — to wash
  24. pitcher — in 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