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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. content — the amount
  9. pitch — completely
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. content — happy
  12. tube — a container
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. rock — music
  15. net — for catching
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. tube — the underground
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. net — in sport
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. net — after costs
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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