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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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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 · press · club · mine · wake · jam · cold · wound

  1. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. cold — an illness
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. press — to push
  8. press — newspapers
  9. wound — an injury
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. press — a publisher
  15. cold — not warm
  16. pitch — completely
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. club — a group
  20. club — for dancing
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. club — for golf
  23. wound — an injury
  24. jam — a tight spot

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