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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. craft — boats
  3. rush — hurry
  4. staff — employees
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. bear — the animal
  7. pitch — completely
  8. degree — an amount
  9. staff — employees
  10. bear — the animal
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — to cut
  15. degree — from a university
  16. degree — temperature
  17. craft — a skill
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. staff — a stick
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. clip — for paper
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. craft — a handicraft

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