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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. track — a path
  3. track — a song
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. fine — all right
  6. track — to keep track
  7. kid — child
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. kid — to tease
  10. ball — a great time
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. lean — to bend
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. ball — a dance
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. spell — letters
  17. pitch — completely
  18. lean — thin
  19. fine — high quality
  20. spell — magic
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. sharp — clever
  24. spell — a short time

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