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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. tube — a container
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. rule — government
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. spell — magic
  7. prune — to trim
  8. cue — a hint
  9. cue — a signal
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. prune — to trim
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. cue — for pool
  17. pitch — completely
  18. spell — a short time
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. rule — a law
  21. tube — the underground
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. spell — letters

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