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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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. bat — the animal
  6. squash — the sport
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. charge — electricity
  10. bank — for money
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. charge — in control
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. shower — to wash
  15. charge — a price
  16. squash — to crush
  17. bank — for money
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. bank — of a river
  20. shower — rain
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. squash — the vegetable

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