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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. chest — of your body
  4. game — a match
  5. game — wild animals
  6. chest — a box
  7. ball — a great time
  8. pitch — completely
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. stand — to bear
  11. pop — soda
  12. pop — music
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. ball — a dance
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. plane — a tool
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. pop — to visit

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