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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. bear — the animal
  5. saw — the tool
  6. degree — an amount
  7. pitch — completely
  8. row — to paddle
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. saw — the tool
  11. hand — help
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. degree — from a university
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. row — a line
  21. degree — temperature
  22. hand — in cards
  23. bear — the animal
  24. hide — to keep secret

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