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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 116 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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. spell — magic
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. face — part of the head
  7. bat — the animal
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. pitch — completely
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. spell — letters
  17. hand — help
  18. present — a gift
  19. face — to point toward
  20. present — there
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. face — to confront
  23. present — the time now
  24. hand — in cards

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