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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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  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. pitch — completely
  2. shower — rain
  3. row — to paddle
  4. mine — for digging
  5. object — a thing
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. date — the fruit
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. object — an aim
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. net — for catching
  13. shower — to wash
  14. object — to protest
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. row — a line
  20. net — after costs
  21. net — in sport
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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