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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 120 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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. pop — music
  3. pop — soda
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cell — a phone
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. bat — the animal
  10. row — to paddle
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. pop — to visit
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. pitch — completely
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. rush — hurry
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. row — a line
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. bat — in an idiom

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