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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: cold · content · fall · firm · pitch · mouse · bore · capital

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. cold — an illness
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. firm — decided
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. pitch — completely
  7. firm — steady
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. bore — to drill
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. fall — the season
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. fall — to drop
  15. content — the amount
  16. capital — money
  17. cold — not warm
  18. firm — a company
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. capital — a city
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. fall — to drop
  23. bore — to tire
  24. content — happy

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