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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 116 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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. last — finally
  7. bound — obliged
  8. row — to paddle
  9. bound — tied together
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. wound — an injury
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. bound — certain
  15. last — final
  16. wound — an injury
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. pitch — completely
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. last — to go on
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. row — a line

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