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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: pop · bear · fork · capital · foot · kid · pitch · lean

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. bear — the animal
  3. capital — a city
  4. fork — in a road
  5. pop — soda
  6. lean — thin
  7. pop — music
  8. capital — money
  9. bear — the animal
  10. lean — to bend
  11. kid — to tease
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. pop — to visit
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. kid — child
  21. foot — a measure
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. pitch — completely
  24. pitch — a sports field

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