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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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. swing — in golf
  5. snap — to click
  6. ground — the earth
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. pitch — completely
  10. last — finally
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. game — a match
  14. swing — music
  15. last — to go on
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — a position
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. bark — to shout
  21. swing — to play on
  22. game — wild animals
  23. last — final
  24. patient — a sick person

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