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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. band — a music group
  4. ground — the earth
  5. board — to get on
  6. shower — to wash
  7. band — a ring
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. pitch — completely
  12. rash — hasty
  13. board — a committee
  14. ground — crushed
  15. chest — of your body
  16. shower — rain
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. rash — a series
  19. chest — a box
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. ground — a position
  23. chest — of your body
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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