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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. ground — crushed
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. degree — an amount
  5. ground — the earth
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. field — farmland
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. board — to get on
  10. field — for sport
  11. degree — from a university
  12. branch — a division
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. field — a subject
  15. object — an aim
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. ground — a position
  18. board — a committee
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. object — to protest
  21. degree — temperature
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. object — a thing
  24. pitch — a sports field

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