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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. cell — a phone
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. saw — the tool
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. ground — crushed
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. ground — a position
  12. ball — a dance
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. saw — the tool
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. ground — the earth
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. cell — in biology
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. wake — a trail
  22. ball — a great time
  23. pitch — completely
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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