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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pitch · march · cell · rash · bay · content · spell · key

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. content — happy
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. spell — a short time
  6. rash — hasty
  7. rash — a series
  8. content — the amount
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. cell — in biology
  11. march — music
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. march — the month
  15. key — the most important part
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. spell — magic
  19. key — for a lock
  20. march — the month
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. key — in music
  23. cell — a phone
  24. spell — letters

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