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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: pitch · trunk · bear · roll · content · pop · racket · cell

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. pitch — completely
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. cell — a phone
  5. content — happy
  6. bear — the animal
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. roll — a cake
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. pop — to visit
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. roll — a list
  14. cell — in biology
  15. content — the amount
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. pop — music
  19. pop — soda
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. bear — the animal
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. trunk — of a tree

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