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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 116 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: capital · rock · calf · straw · rule · game · pitch · stick

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — money
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. rock — music
  10. game — wild animals
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. pitch — completely
  13. rock — a stone
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. rule — government
  18. game — a match
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. rule — a law
  24. calf — a young animal

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