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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. game — wild animals
  4. bat — the animal
  5. pop — music
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. pop — soda
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. pitch — completely
  12. pop — to visit
  13. content — happy
  14. game — a match
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. content — the amount
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. sharp — clever
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. bat — in an idiom

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