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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. last — to go on
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. roll — a list
  10. last — finally
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. spring — of water
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. spring — the season
  20. pitch — completely
  21. roll — a cake
  22. spring — a coil
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. bowl — a dish

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