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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 116 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: bear · court · wave · lie · pitch · drill · bowl · capital

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. drill — the tool
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. pitch — completely
  9. court — of law
  10. lie — to recline
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. court — for sport
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. bear — the animal
  17. capital — money
  18. drill — a practice
  19. court — of a king
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. drill — army training
  24. wave — of the sea

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