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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: face · bass · bat · plane · cold · pitcher · pitch · pass

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. face — part of the head
  3. bass — the fish
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. cold — an illness
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. pitch — completely
  10. face — to confront
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. pass — a permit
  15. face — to point toward
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. plane — a tool
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. bat — the animal
  22. cold — not warm
  23. bass — low music
  24. cold — the Cold War

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