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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: pit · bay · swing · cold · pitch · march

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. swing — music
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. march — the month
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. swing — to play on
  10. cold — not warm
  11. pit — a hole
  12. swing — in golf
  13. march — music
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. cold — an illness
  16. pitch — completely
  17. march — the month
  18. cold — the Cold War

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