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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 116 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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. lean — thin
  3. season — of the year
  4. wind — moving air
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. last — finally
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. net — in sport
  10. last — to go on
  11. pitch — completely
  12. net — after costs
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. last — final
  15. lean — to bend
  16. wind — moving air
  17. net — for catching
  18. lean — to rest against

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