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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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. stock — shares
  5. field — for sport
  6. vault — a safe
  7. field — farmland
  8. field — a subject
  9. land — a country
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. stock — goods
  13. ground — crushed
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. cell — a phone
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. cell — in biology
  20. land — to come down
  21. land — ground
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. ground — a position
  24. ground — the earth

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