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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. degree — an amount
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. bat — the animal
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. firm — decided
  7. lean — thin
  8. wound — an injury
  9. fine — all right
  10. degree — temperature
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. wound — an injury
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. fine — high quality
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. lean — to bend
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. stand — to bear
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. firm — steady
  22. firm — a company
  23. pitch — completely
  24. degree — from a university

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