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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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. mate — to breed
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. content — the amount
  8. mate — a partner
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. mate — a friend
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. chair — a leader
  14. stem — to come from
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. game — a match
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. content — happy
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. game — wild animals
  24. pitch — completely

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