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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. drill — army training
  3. pitch — completely
  4. can — a tin
  5. file — a document
  6. file — a line of people
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. court — of law
  12. cell — in biology
  13. court — of a king
  14. can — a tin
  15. content — the amount
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. can — to be able to
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. drill — the tool
  20. file — a tool
  21. cell — a phone
  22. content — happy
  23. drill — a practice
  24. court — for sport

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