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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: bass · saw · wave · ground · degree · field · pitch · firm

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. ground — the earth
  4. firm — decided
  5. degree — from a university
  6. degree — temperature
  7. firm — steady
  8. field — farmland
  9. field — for sport
  10. bass — low music
  11. saw — the tool
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. ground — crushed
  14. bass — the fish
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. field — a subject
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. degree — an amount
  19. ground — a position
  20. firm — a company
  21. pitch — completely
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. wave — with your hand

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