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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 116 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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  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. rest — what's left
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. kick — in football
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. scale — size or range
  8. tear — to rip
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — from crying
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. rest — what's left
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. kid — to tease
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. rest — a break
  17. kid — child
  18. scale — in music
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. squash — to crush
  22. pitch — completely
  23. squash — the sport
  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