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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  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 sports field
  2. key — the most important part
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. tube — a container
  6. game — a match
  7. charge — electricity
  8. rash — a series
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. rash — hasty
  11. charge — a price
  12. key — in music
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. pitch — completely
  16. degree — an amount
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. charge — in control
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. key — for a lock
  21. degree — temperature
  22. tube — the underground
  23. game — wild animals
  24. degree — from a university

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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