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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. lean — thin
  3. mug — a cup
  4. mug — to rob
  5. firm — steady
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. mug — a face
  8. clip — a video
  9. firm — a company
  10. object — an aim
  11. object — a thing
  12. cell — in biology
  13. clip — for paper
  14. cell — a phone
  15. firm — decided
  16. chest — of your body
  17. pitch — completely
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. clip — to cut
  20. chest — of your body
  21. lean — to bend
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. object — to protest
  24. chest — a box

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