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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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. saw — the tool
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. season — of the year
  5. season — in sport
  6. last — final
  7. prune — to trim
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. saw — the tool
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. swing — music
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. last — to go on
  16. swing — in golf
  17. prune — to trim
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. pitch — completely
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. swing — to play on
  22. foot — a measure
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. last — finally

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