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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: spell · capital · wind · racket · pop · perch · root · pitch

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. wind — moving air
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. spell — a short time
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. spell — letters
  8. wind — moving air
  9. spell — magic
  10. capital — money
  11. pop — music
  12. pop — soda
  13. capital — a city
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. perch — the fish
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. root — of a word
  19. root — the cause
  20. pitch — completely
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. root — of a plant

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