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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. scale — in music
  4. spring — the season
  5. pitch — completely
  6. can — to be able to
  7. last — final
  8. pop — soda
  9. pop — music
  10. can — a tin
  11. spring — a coil
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. last — to go on
  14. spring — of water
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. game — wild animals
  18. pop — to visit
  19. scale — size or range
  20. current — electric
  21. can — a tin
  22. game — a match
  23. current — of water
  24. current — happening now

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