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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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. chest — of your body
  5. present — there
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — of water
  8. chair — a leader
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — a box
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. spring — a coil
  15. root — of a word
  16. present — a gift
  17. root — of a plant
  18. root — the cause
  19. can — to be able to
  20. can — a tin
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. pitch — completely
  23. present — the time now
  24. can — a tin

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