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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: coach · foot · pitch · fall · wax · rush · chest · present

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. chest — of your body
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. pitch — completely
  5. chest — of your body
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. chest — a box
  8. fall — the season
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. foot — a measure
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. present — the time now
  14. present — a gift
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. fall — to drop
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. fall — to drop
  19. present — there
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. wax — to grow
  24. wax — in the ear

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