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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. pitch — completely
  3. row — to paddle
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. cold — an illness
  7. firm — a company
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. shower — rain
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. row — a line
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. firm — steady
  16. shower — to wash
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. kick — in football
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. bowl — to roll

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