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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: spell · march · pitch · wind · deal · bank · content · pit

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bank — of a river
  3. deal — to handle
  4. march — the month
  5. content — happy
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. wind — moving air
  8. spell — letters
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. bank — for money
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. bank — for money
  16. pitch — completely
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. march — the month
  19. march — music
  20. spell — a short time
  21. pit — a hole
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. spell — magic
  24. content — the amount

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