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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. pitch — completely
  3. clip — a video
  4. bear — the animal
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. object — to protest
  7. bear — the animal
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cell — a phone
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — music
  13. bore — to drill
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. object — a thing
  17. clip — to cut
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. chair — a leader
  20. bore — to tire
  21. clip — for paper
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. swing — in golf
  24. object — an aim

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