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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: pitcher · capital · racket · pop · game · can · trunk · pit

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. capital — a city
  5. pit — a hole
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pop — music
  8. can — a tin
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pop — soda
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. game — wild animals
  19. pop — to visit
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. game — a match
  22. can — to be able to
  23. capital — money
  24. capital — a big letter

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