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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: tear · mate · chip · present · pitch · file · bound · kid

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. tear — from crying
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. file — a tool
  5. tear — to rip
  6. chip — to eat
  7. present — there
  8. file — a line of people
  9. bound — certain
  10. pitch — completely
  11. mate — a partner
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — to tease
  14. present — the time now
  15. mate — a friend
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. chip — for betting
  18. tear — from crying
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. file — a document
  21. bound — tied together
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. present — a gift
  24. mate — to breed

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