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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: perch · date · bowl · fan · cold · pitch · kick · racket

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. kick — in football
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. cold — not warm
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. date — the fruit
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. cold — an illness
  22. perch — the fish
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. racket — a loud noise

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