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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. board — to get on
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — for sport
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. row — a line
  9. sharp — clever
  10. board — a committee
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. stock — shares
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. perch — the fish
  17. plane — a tool
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. row — to paddle
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. stock — goods
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. court — of law

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