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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. spell — letters
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. content — happy
  8. kid — to tease
  9. spring — of water
  10. chip — for betting
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. chip — to eat
  13. pit — in a race
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. spring — a coil
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. pit — a hole
  19. kid — child
  20. spell — a short time
  21. content — the amount
  22. spring — the season
  23. perch — the fish
  24. spell — magic

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