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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. cell — a phone
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. present — the time now
  5. kid — child
  6. present — there
  7. pitch — completely
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. cell — in biology
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. present — a gift
  18. kid — to tease

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