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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. present — there
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. roll — a cake
  7. present — the time now
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. present — a gift
  11. hand — in cards
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. row — a line
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. deal — to handle
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. roll — a list
  20. hand — help
  21. row — to paddle
  22. pitch — completely
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. trunk — of a tree

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