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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. land — ground
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. file — a tool
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. roll — a cake
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. land — a country
  9. file — a document
  10. present — there
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. dip — to sink
  13. present — a gift
  14. foot — a measure
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. land — to come down
  17. roll — a list
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. file — a line of people
  21. pitch — completely
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. present — the time now
  24. foot — part of the body

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