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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. land — to come down
  3. pitch — completely
  4. land — ground
  5. swing — music
  6. shower — rain
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. tear — from crying
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. bark — to shout
  13. shower — to wash
  14. swing — in golf
  15. swing — to play on
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. sharp — clever
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. land — a country
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. stand — to bear

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