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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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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: cold · capital · chip · plane · pitch · pass · perch · wind

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. chip — for betting
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. cold — not warm
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. capital — money
  10. plane — a tool
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. pass — a permit
  13. perch — the fish
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. cold — an illness
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. wind — moving air
  20. capital — a city
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. chip — to eat
  23. wind — moving air
  24. plane — in geometry

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