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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: straw · pitch · tear · cell · cabinet · content

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. tear — from crying
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. pitch — completely
  5. tear — to rip
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. cell — a phone
  8. tear — from crying
  9. content — happy
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. cell — in biology
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. content — the amount
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. straw — to clutch at straws

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