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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. mark — a grade
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. chest — of your body
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. march — the month
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. march — music
  10. shower — rain
  11. content — happy
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. shower — to wash
  18. chest — of your body
  19. mark — a trace
  20. march — the month
  21. content — the amount
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. chest — a box

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