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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. sharp — clever
  3. net — in sport
  4. tear — from crying
  5. pop — to visit
  6. tear — from crying
  7. pop — music
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. mug — a cup
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. net — for catching
  15. wind — moving air
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. pitch — completely
  18. pop — soda
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mug — to rob
  21. tear — to rip
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. net — after costs
  24. mug — a face

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