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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 120 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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. pitch — completely
  3. rock — music
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. shower — rain
  6. wax — to grow
  7. shower — to wash
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. clip — a video
  10. firm — decided
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. cold — an illness
  14. firm — steady
  15. clip — for paper
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. rock — a stone
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. clip — to cut
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. cold — not warm

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