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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. spell — a short time
  3. lean — thin
  4. bat — the animal
  5. net — in sport
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. spell — letters
  8. net — after costs
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. key — in music
  16. spell — magic
  17. pitch — completely
  18. lean — to bend
  19. key — the most important part
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. sharp — clever
  22. net — for catching
  23. key — for a lock
  24. bat — for baseball

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