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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 116 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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. pitch — completely
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. field — farmland
  7. field — a subject
  8. hand — in cards
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. pit — a hole
  13. present — a gift
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. cold — not warm
  16. hand — help
  17. present — the time now
  18. field — for sport
  19. pit — in a race
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. present — there
  24. cold — the Cold War

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