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

Word bank: kid · band · bat · pitch · ruler · hide

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. kid — child
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. pitch — completely
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. kid — to tease
  13. band — a music group
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. band — a ring
  18. 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