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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. wind — moving air
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. fall — to drop
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. season — in sport
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. roll — a list
  14. cell — a phone
  15. fall — to drop
  16. object — a thing
  17. object — to protest
  18. pitch — completely
  19. fall — the season
  20. cell — in biology
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. wind — moving air
  23. season — of the year
  24. object — an aim

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