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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: bat · craft · tear · swing · chair · march · stand · pitch

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. swing — music
  4. craft — boats
  5. tear — from crying
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. march — the month
  8. tear — to rip
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. chair — a leader
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. craft — a skill
  13. march — music
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. swing — in golf
  17. bat — the animal
  18. march — the month
  19. tear — from crying
  20. stand — to bear
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. swing — to play on
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. pitch — completely

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