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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 116 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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. swing — to play on
  4. cell — in biology
  5. firm — a company
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. swing — in golf
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. sharp — clever
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. firm — steady
  15. lean — thin
  16. firm — decided
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. lean — to bend
  19. cell — a phone
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. swing — music
  24. bat — the animal

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