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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 116 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: mine · pit · bat · present · pitch · lean · coach · mouse

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. lean — thin
  8. bat — the animal
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. present — there
  11. pit — in a race
  12. pit — a hole
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. lean — to bend
  21. pitch — completely
  22. present — a gift
  23. present — the time now
  24. mine — an explosive

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