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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 120 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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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 · rest · land · degree · stick · pop · chest · mug

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. mug — a face
  3. rest — a break
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. land — ground
  6. pop — music
  7. chest — of your body
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. degree — an amount
  10. degree — temperature
  11. chest — a box
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. land — a country
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. chest — of your body
  16. degree — from a university
  17. land — to come down
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. pitch — completely
  20. rest — what's left
  21. pop — soda
  22. mug — to rob
  23. rest — what's left
  24. pop — to visit

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