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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. race — a contest
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. perch — the fish
  5. rest — what's left
  6. pitch — completely
  7. wound — an injury
  8. rest — a break
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. row — a line
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. mark — a grade
  14. mark — a trace
  15. can — to be able to
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. race — the arms race
  19. rest — what's left
  20. row — to paddle
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — a tin
  24. race — humankind

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