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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. cell — in biology
  3. scale — in music
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. last — final
  6. cell — a phone
  7. season — of the year
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. last — finally
  10. race — the arms race
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. last — to go on
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. race — a contest
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. race — humankind
  17. lie — to recline
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. chair — a leader
  21. scale — size or range
  22. season — in sport
  23. pitch — completely
  24. scale — for weighing

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