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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. face — part of the head
  5. bass — the fish
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. bass — low music
  9. staff — a stick
  10. staff — employees
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. land — to come down
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. land — ground
  15. cell — in biology
  16. sharp — clever
  17. rash — a series
  18. cell — a phone
  19. face — to point toward
  20. staff — employees
  21. pitch — completely
  22. land — a country
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. face — to confront

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