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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. land — to come down
  5. key — for a lock
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. stem — to come from
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. game — wild animals
  13. land — a country
  14. land — ground
  15. key — in music
  16. key — the most important part
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — a match
  19. last — to go on
  20. pitch — completely
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. last — finally
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. jam — to spread on bread

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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