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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: craft · stand · tear · rule · ground · saw · pitch · wound

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. saw — the tool
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. ground — a position
  6. saw — the tool
  7. wound — an injury
  8. rule — a law
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. tear — from crying
  11. wound — an injury
  12. rule — government
  13. tear — to rip
  14. stand — to bear
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. craft — boats
  19. ground — crushed
  20. tear — from crying
  21. pitch — completely
  22. craft — a skill
  23. ground — the earth
  24. craft — a handicraft

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