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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 116 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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. 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. ground — crushed
  2. chair — a leader
  3. bat — the animal
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. bank — of a river
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. ground — a position
  9. bank — for money
  10. wound — an injury
  11. ground — the earth
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. pitch — completely
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. wound — an injury
  17. bank — for money
  18. 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