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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: straw · track · calf · mouse · swing · pitch · pit · chest

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. track — to keep track
  3. swing — music
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. chest — of your body
  6. pitch — completely
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. pit — in a race
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. swing — to play on
  15. track — a song
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. chest — a box
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. chest — of your body
  22. swing — in golf
  23. track — a path
  24. straw — dry grass

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