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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. object — an aim
  4. craft — a skill
  5. rest — what's left
  6. object — to protest
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. clip — to cut
  11. craft — boats
  12. cell — in biology
  13. key — the most important part
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. clip — for paper
  16. key — in music
  17. object — a thing
  18. cell — a phone
  19. rest — a break
  20. key — for a lock
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. clip — a video
  23. rest — what's left
  24. patient — a sick person

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