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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 newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. stand — to bear
  6. game — wild animals
  7. charge — in control
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. game — a match
  11. foot — a measure
  12. pop — to visit
  13. rash — hasty
  14. charge — electricity
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. march — the month
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. pitch — completely
  19. charge — a price
  20. march — music
  21. pop — music
  22. march — the month
  23. rash — a series
  24. pop — soda

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