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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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. season — of the year
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. wake — a trail
  6. shower — to wash
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. firm — decided
  11. pitch — completely
  12. shower — rain
  13. season — in sport
  14. clip — for paper
  15. rule — government
  16. rule — a law
  17. clip — to cut
  18. firm — steady
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. board — a committee
  21. board — to get on
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. firm — a company
  24. clip — a video

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