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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: drill · court · safe · spring · straw · capital · pitch · scale

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. pitch — completely
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. court — of a king
  5. capital — money
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. spring — of water
  8. scale — size or range
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. court — of law
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. scale — in music
  15. spring — the season
  16. drill — a practice
  17. spring — a coil
  18. capital — a city
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. court — for sport
  23. drill — the tool
  24. drill — army training

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