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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: pitch · face · band · present · cell · swing

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. face — to confront
  4. swing — music
  5. present — the time now
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. band — a music group
  9. face — part of the head
  10. present — there
  11. band — a ring
  12. pitch — completely
  13. cell — a phone
  14. swing — in golf
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. swing — to play on
  18. face — to point toward

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