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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. date — the fruit
  4. content — happy
  5. fall — to drop
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cue — a hint
  10. kid — to tease
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. net — after costs
  13. cue — for pool
  14. fall — to drop
  15. cap — a hat
  16. fall — the season
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. net — for catching
  19. content — the amount
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. net — in sport
  23. kid — child
  24. cue — a signal

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