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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. season — in sport
  3. pitch — completely
  4. present — the time now
  5. chest — of your body
  6. present — a gift
  7. cell — in biology
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. season — of the year
  10. object — an aim
  11. track — a song
  12. cell — a phone
  13. object — to protest
  14. chest — a box
  15. chest — of your body
  16. bark — to shout
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. track — a path
  20. track — to keep track
  21. present — there
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. pitch — a sports field

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