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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. snap — to click
  4. stock — goods
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. spell — letters
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. stock — shares
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. spell — magic
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. pitch — completely
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. spell — a short time
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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