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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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. rest — what's left
  3. net — for catching
  4. net — after costs
  5. game — a match
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. spell — a short time
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. drill — a practice
  10. rest — what's left
  11. chair — a leader
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. rest — a break
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. game — wild animals
  17. drill — the tool
  18. drill — army training
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. spell — letters
  21. net — in sport
  22. spell — magic
  23. pitch — completely
  24. temple — a place of worship

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