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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: racket · saw · capital · mate · stock · bore · rule · pitcher

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. stock — shares
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. mate — a partner
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. stock — goods
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. mate — a friend
  11. rule — government
  12. rule — a law
  13. mate — to breed
  14. capital — money
  15. saw — the tool
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. bore — to drill
  19. saw — the tool
  20. capital — a city
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. racket — for tennis

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