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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. roll — a list
  3. bear — the animal
  4. cap — a hat
  5. spring — of water
  6. fine — all right
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. fine — high quality
  9. rule — government
  10. kid — to tease
  11. rule — a law
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. spring — a coil
  14. roll — a cake
  15. cap — a lid
  16. bear — the animal
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. cap — of ice
  19. pitch — completely
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. kid — child
  23. spring — the season
  24. roll — on a roll

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