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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. scale — size or range
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. ground — a position
  7. ball — a great time
  8. chest — of your body
  9. perch — the fish
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. pitch — completely
  13. ground — the earth
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. ground — crushed
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. chair — a leader
  20. chest — a box
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. ball — a dance
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. scale — in music

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