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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.

Words on the sheet
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: pitch · rash · cold · lean · saw · stick · pop · degree

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. cold — an illness
  3. saw — the tool
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. pop — soda
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. degree — temperature
  10. saw — the tool
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. degree — from a university
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. rash — hasty
  15. degree — an amount
  16. pitch — completely
  17. cold — not warm
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. lean — to bend
  20. lean — thin
  21. rash — a series
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. pop — to visit
  24. pop — music

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