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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: capital · bat · sharp · fan · coach · wound · wake · pit

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bat — the animal
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. capital — a city
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. wake — a trail
  15. wound — an injury
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. sharp — clever
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. capital — money
  24. pit — a hole

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