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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. wind — moving air
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. firm — steady
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. bat — the animal
  7. row — to paddle
  8. firm — decided
  9. wind — moving air
  10. firm — a company
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. snap — to click
  14. spell — letters
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. spell — magic
  17. spell — a short time
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. row — a line
  22. capital — a city
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. capital — money

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