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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 has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. pit — a hole
  3. hand — help
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. pitch — completely
  10. content — happy
  11. content — the amount
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. bat — the animal
  15. hand — in cards
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. bass — low music
  18. bass — the fish
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. pit — in a race
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. hand — part of the body

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