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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. field — farmland
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. rock — music
  5. field — a subject
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. chest — of your body
  10. face — part of the head
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. face — to confront
  15. face — to point toward
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — the animal
  18. field — for sport
  19. rock — a stone
  20. chest — a box
  21. chest — of your body
  22. lie — to recline
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. rock — to move gently

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