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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. pitch — completely
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. last — to go on
  7. object — an aim
  8. spring — a coil
  9. shower — to wash
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. last — finally
  12. last — final
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. object — to protest
  15. season — in sport
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. spring — of water
  18. season — of the year
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. spring — the season
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. object — a thing
  24. shower — rain

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