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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: ball · rash · pitch · wind · track · spell

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. rash — a series
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. track — to keep track
  6. track — a path
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. ball — a dance
  9. pitch — completely
  10. wind — moving air
  11. track — a song
  12. wind — moving air
  13. rash — hasty
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. spell — magic
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — a short time

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