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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. track — to keep track
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. root — of a plant
  6. shower — to wash
  7. wound — an injury
  8. cap — a hat
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. root — the cause
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. net — for catching
  15. pitch — completely
  16. cap — of ice
  17. net — in sport
  18. cap — a lid
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. net — after costs
  21. track — a path
  22. track — a song
  23. root — of a word
  24. shower — rain

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