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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. row — a line
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. pitch — completely
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. game — wild animals
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. content — the amount
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. content — happy
  17. bulb — for light
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. bulb — for light
  20. row — to paddle
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. wax — to grow
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. game — a match

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