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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. mate — to breed
  4. bulb — for light
  5. net — in sport
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. toast — bread
  9. bulb — for light
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. shower — to wash
  13. net — for catching
  14. game — wild animals
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. net — after costs
  17. shower — rain
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. pitch — completely
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — a match
  23. mate — a friend
  24. mate — a partner

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