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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 120 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. prune — to trim
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. pitch — completely
  5. chest — a box
  6. prune — to trim
  7. rash — hasty
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. rash — a series
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. pass — a permit
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. fork — in a road

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