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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. row — to paddle
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. face — to confront
  6. current — of water
  7. fork — in a road
  8. face — part of the head
  9. clip — to cut
  10. pitch — completely
  11. clip — a video
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. current — electric
  15. kid — child
  16. clip — for paper
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. face — to point toward
  20. kid — to tease
  21. current — happening now
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. row — a line
  24. row — a quarrel

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