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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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  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. pitch — completely
  2. last — final
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. key — the most important part
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. key — for a lock
  8. last — to go on
  9. key — in music
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. land — ground
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. land — a country
  14. hand — help
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. last — finally
  20. land — to come down
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. hand — in cards
  23. lash — to lash out
  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