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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. clip — to cut
  4. cap — a lid
  5. spell — letters
  6. craft — a skill
  7. key — for a lock
  8. clip — for paper
  9. key — the most important part
  10. clip — a video
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. cap — a hat
  15. key — in music
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. spell — magic
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. craft — boats
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. cap — of ice
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. spell — a short time
  24. pitch — completely

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