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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. lean — thin
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. sharp — clever
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. tube — the underground
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. lean — to bend
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. mark — a trace
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. mark — a grade
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. pitch — completely
  21. bat — the animal
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. tube — a container

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