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

Word bank: scale · pitch · clip · racket · bowl · wind

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — moving air
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. clip — for paper
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. clip — to cut
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. scale — size or range
  12. scale — in music
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. clip — a video

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