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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: pitch · wax · mug · leaves · swing · season · wound · pitcher

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. wound — an injury
  3. season — of the year
  4. mug — to rob
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. mug — a face
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. swing — to play on
  11. wax — to grow
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitch — completely
  15. swing — music
  16. mug — a cup
  17. season — in sport
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. wound — an injury
  20. swing — in golf
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. leaves — to go away

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