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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: bound · pitch · shower · object · clip · mate · hide · chest

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bound — obliged
  3. object — an aim
  4. shower — rain
  5. mate — to breed
  6. pitch — completely
  7. object — to protest
  8. clip — for paper
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. clip — to cut
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. chest — a box
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. mate — a partner
  15. bound — certain
  16. object — a thing
  17. mate — a friend
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. bound — tied together
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. chest — of your body
  22. shower — to wash
  23. clip — a video
  24. hide — to keep secret

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