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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. stand — to bear
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. clip — for paper
  5. wake — a trail
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. root — of a plant
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. bark — to shout
  13. root — the cause
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. clip — a video
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. root — of a word
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. clip — to cut
  22. dip — to sink
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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