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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. spell — magic
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. bulb — for light
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. spell — a short time
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. stock — goods
  11. clip — a video
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. stock — shares
  14. spell — letters
  15. bulb — for light
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. cell — a phone
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. cell — in biology
  21. branch — a division
  22. sharp — clever
  23. clip — to cut
  24. clip — for paper

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