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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  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. racket — for tennis
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. firm — decided
  4. degree — an amount
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. shower — to wash
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. pit — a hole
  9. degree — temperature
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. pit — in a race
  12. firm — steady
  13. pitch — completely
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. cell — in biology
  17. shower — rain
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. cell — a phone
  20. firm — a company
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. degree — from a university
  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