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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. march — the month
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. pitch — completely
  11. season — of the year
  12. content — happy
  13. spring — of water
  14. ball — a great time
  15. march — the month
  16. staff — employees
  17. content — the amount
  18. spring — a coil
  19. season — in sport
  20. march — music
  21. spring — the season
  22. staff — employees
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. ball — a dance

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