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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. net — in sport
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. game — wild animals
  6. game — a match
  7. shower — rain
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. net — after costs
  10. shower — to wash
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. stem — to come from
  14. ball — a dance
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. ball — a great time
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. pitch — completely
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. net — for catching
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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