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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. pitch — completely
  3. bat — the animal
  4. degree — an amount
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. present — a gift
  8. bore — to drill
  9. can — a tin
  10. sharp — clever
  11. season — in sport
  12. present — there
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. can — to be able to
  15. season — of the year
  16. degree — from a university
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. can — a tin
  21. degree — temperature
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. bore — to tire
  24. present — the time now

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