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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: rush · present · lean · content · band · pitch · kick · pound

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. band — a music group
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. content — the amount
  10. present — a gift
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. lean — to bend
  15. kick — in football
  16. pitch — completely
  17. pound — a weight
  18. present — there
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. present — the time now
  21. content — happy
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. lean — thin
  24. band — a ring

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