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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. sharp — clever
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. cell — in biology
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. track — a path
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. march — music
  11. cell — a phone
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. pitch — completely
  14. march — the month
  15. band — a music group
  16. scale — size or range
  17. track — a song
  18. scale — in music
  19. track — to keep track
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. band — a ring
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. march — the month

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