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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. present — a gift
  3. tear — from crying
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. present — there
  7. ball — a great time
  8. tear — to rip
  9. ball — a dance
  10. cold — not warm
  11. can — a tin
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. can — to be able to
  15. pitch — completely
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. cold — an illness
  19. present — the time now
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. can — a tin
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. tear — from crying

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