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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. pitch — completely
  5. content — happy
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. squash — to crush
  9. game — a match
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. squash — the sport
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. shower — to wash
  15. shower — rain
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — the tool
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. wax — to grow
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. content — the amount
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. game — wild animals

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