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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. game — wild animals
  3. wound — an injury
  4. vault — a safe
  5. pop — music
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. pop — to visit
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. pitch — completely
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. face — to confront
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. game — a match
  19. face — to point toward
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pop — soda
  22. face — part of the head
  23. bark — to shout
  24. plane — a tool

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