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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. net — for catching
  3. track — to keep track
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. pitch — completely
  7. rash — hasty
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. net — after costs
  13. chest — of your body
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. track — a song
  16. chest — a box
  17. hand — help
  18. mark — a trace
  19. mark — a grade
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. net — in sport
  22. rash — a series
  23. track — a path
  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