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

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. last — finally
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. last — to go on
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. cold — not warm
  9. pitch — completely
  10. cold — an illness
  11. toast — bread
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. root — the cause
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. root — of a plant
  17. last — final
  18. root — of a word

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