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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 120 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 ball is in your ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. court — for sport
  3. pitch — completely
  4. ground — a position
  5. ground — crushed
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. ground — the earth
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. court — of a king
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. shower — to wash
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. game — a match
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. shower — rain
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. court — of law
  20. rush — hurry
  21. game — wild animals
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. pitch — a sports field

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