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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. lean — to bend
  3. cap — a lid
  4. scale — size or range
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. cold — an illness
  7. scale — in music
  8. lean — thin
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. charge — in control
  11. ground — the earth
  12. pitch — completely
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. charge — a price
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cap — a hat
  17. ground — a position
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. charge — electricity
  20. cap — of ice
  21. ground — crushed
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — for catching
  24. pitch — a sales talk

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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