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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. bore — to tire
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. chest — of your body
  6. mate — to breed
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. chest — of your body
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. chest — a box
  12. bore — to drill
  13. chip — for betting
  14. mate — a partner
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. shower — rain
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. mate — a friend
  20. chip — to eat
  21. scale — size or range
  22. shower — to wash
  23. scale — in music
  24. chip — in a computer

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