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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: pitch · capital · straw · trunk · toast · chair · bear · bat

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. pitch — completely
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. capital — a city
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. chair — a leader
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. bear — the animal
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. bear — the animal
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. capital — money
  19. bat — the animal
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. toast — bread
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. chair — to sit on

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