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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 116 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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. fall — the season
  3. file — a line of people
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. pitch — completely
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. lean — thin
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. stem — to come from
  12. file — a document
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. cell — a phone
  17. cell — in biology
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. lean — to bend
  20. fall — to drop
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. fall — to drop
  23. file — a tool
  24. sharp — clever

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