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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. game — wild animals
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. mine — for digging
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. clip — a video
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. shower — to wash
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. shower — rain
  12. clip — for paper
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. game — a match
  17. fine — high quality
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. clip — to cut
  22. fine — all right
  23. pitch — completely
  24. cabinet — ministers

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