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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. pitch — completely
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. court — of law
  9. wind — moving air
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. wound — an injury
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. content — happy
  15. court — of a king
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. court — for sport
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. content — the amount
  20. wind — moving air
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. wound — an injury

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