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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 · kick · mate · fall · pitch · hand · cap · charge

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. hand — help
  3. charge — electricity
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — the season
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cap — of ice
  9. fall — to drop
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. mate — a partner
  12. tear — from crying
  13. kick — in football
  14. tear — to rip
  15. mate — a friend
  16. charge — in control
  17. pitch — completely
  18. mate — to breed
  19. hand — in cards
  20. charge — a price
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. tear — from crying
  23. cap — a hat
  24. kick — a thrill

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