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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. chest — of your body
  3. present — a gift
  4. cold — not warm
  5. present — the time now
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. rock — music
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. present — there
  10. net — in sport
  11. vault — a safe
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. cold — an illness
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. net — after costs
  18. chest — a box
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. rock — a stone
  24. net — for catching

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