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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 120 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 carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bulb — for light
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. bulb — for light
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. sharp — clever
  20. pitch — completely
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — a phone
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. plane — in geometry

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