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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. kick — in football
  3. object — an aim
  4. game — wild animals
  5. object — to protest
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. cold — not warm
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. prune — to trim
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. object — a thing
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. content — the amount
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. content — happy
  20. prune — to trim
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. pitch — completely
  23. game — a match
  24. cold — an illness

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