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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. cue — a hint
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. cue — a signal
  6. kid — to tease
  7. cue — for pool
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. kid — child
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. bat — the animal
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. pitch — completely
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. craft — a skill
  21. rush — hurry
  22. craft — boats
  23. row — to paddle
  24. row — a line

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