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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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. bear — the animal
  3. ball — a dance
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. ball — a great time
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. last — final
  12. bear — the animal
  13. last — to go on
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. last — finally
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. leaves — to go away

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