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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: coach · pitch · date · mug · foot · kid · snap · tear

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. mug — a cup
  4. foot — a measure
  5. mug — to rob
  6. pitch — completely
  7. tear — from crying
  8. kid — child
  9. tear — to rip
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. date — the fruit
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. snap — to click
  17. mug — a face
  18. kid — to tease
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. tear — from crying
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. coach — a trainer

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