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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. season — of the year
  3. snap — to click
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. season — in sport
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. bore — to tire
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. content — the amount
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. bore — to drill
  18. swing — in golf
  19. content — happy
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. stand — to bear
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. swing — to play on
  24. swing — music

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