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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 116 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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. chip — for betting
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. march — the month
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. march — music
  8. current — electric
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. wind — moving air
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. march — the month
  14. last — finally
  15. current — of water
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. last — to go on
  19. chip — to eat
  20. last — final
  21. wind — moving air
  22. current — happening now
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. pitch — completely

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