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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. rash — hasty
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — the tool
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. rash — a series
  11. pitch — completely
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. squash — the sport
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. squash — to crush
  17. wound — an injury
  18. pit — a hole
  19. wound — an injury
  20. pit — in a race
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. branch — a division
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. pitch — a sports field

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