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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  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. season — to add flavour
  2. season — in sport
  3. track — to keep track
  4. track — a song
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. race — the arms race
  9. season — of the year
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. race — humankind
  13. race — a contest
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. foot — a measure
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. track — a path
  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