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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  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. chair — a leader
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. pitch — completely
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. plane — a tool
  7. mark — a trace
  8. mug — a cup
  9. cold — an illness
  10. mug — to rob
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. cold — not warm
  13. snap — to click
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. drill — army training
  17. mug — a face
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. drill — a practice
  20. drill — the tool
  21. mark — a grade
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. chair — to sit on
  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