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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. drill — a practice
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. content — the amount
  6. present — there
  7. content — happy
  8. drill — army training
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. present — a gift
  12. rush — hurry
  13. root — of a word
  14. cold — not warm
  15. root — of a plant
  16. drill — the tool
  17. cold — an illness
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. root — the cause
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. pitch — completely

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