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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. season — in sport
  3. key — the most important part
  4. wind — moving air
  5. kid — to tease
  6. key — for a lock
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. kid — child
  10. object — to protest
  11. rock — music
  12. season — of the year
  13. rock — a stone
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. wind — moving air
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — a stick
  19. object — a thing
  20. key — in music
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. pitch — completely
  23. staff — employees
  24. object — an aim

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