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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. clip — for paper
  3. staff — employees
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. staff — employees
  7. clip — to cut
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. cap — a lid
  10. stem — to come from
  11. pitch — completely
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. present — there
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. staff — a stick
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. cap — a hat
  18. present — the time now
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. wax — to grow
  21. present — a gift
  22. cap — of ice
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. clip — a video

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