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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: pitch · rock · fine · mine · lash · wound · craft · cold

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  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. craft — boats
  2. mine — for digging
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. pitch — completely
  7. wound — an injury
  8. cold — an illness
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. fine — all right
  12. fine — high quality
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — not warm
  15. craft — a skill
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. rock — a stone
  20. rock — music
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. lash — an eyelash
  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