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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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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: mine · spell · sharp · rash · cell · pound · pitch · toast

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. rash — a series
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. spell — a short time
  9. pitch — completely
  10. sharp — clever
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. spell — letters
  13. cell — a phone
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. toast — bread
  18. cell — in biology
  19. mine — for digging
  20. pound — a weight
  21. rash — hasty
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. spell — magic

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