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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. clip — a video
  5. court — for sport
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. clip — for paper
  8. suit — to fit
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — for sport
  11. pitch — completely
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. clip — to cut
  16. suit — clothes
  17. suit — in cards
  18. stand — to bear
  19. field — farmland
  20. court — of law
  21. court — of a king
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. dip — to sink
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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