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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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468
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: bowl · pitch · spell · snap · chest · drill · sharp · bore

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. chest — of your body
  3. drill — a practice
  4. spell — a short time
  5. chest — a box
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. chest — of your body
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. drill — army training
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. spell — letters
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. spell — magic
  14. bore — to tire
  15. sharp — clever
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. bore — to drill
  19. pitch — completely
  20. snap — to click
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. drill — the tool
  24. bowl — to roll

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