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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: pitch · prune · kick · court · face · saw · wind · calf

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. court — for sport
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. prune — to trim
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. saw — the tool
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. pitch — completely
  13. saw — the tool
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. face — to confront
  16. face — to point toward
  17. wind — moving air
  18. prune — to trim
  19. court — of a king
  20. wind — moving air
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. court — of law
  23. kick — in football
  24. face — part of the head

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