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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  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 — a sales talk
  2. face — to confront
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. club — for dancing
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. pitch — completely
  10. club — a group
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. ground — a position
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. tube — a container
  15. club — for golf
  16. face — part of the head
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. ground — crushed
  19. tube — the underground
  20. face — to point toward
  21. cell — in biology
  22. dip — to sink
  23. racket — a loud noise
  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