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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.

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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: spring · fine · sharp · pitch · pass · snap · stick · object

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. fine — high quality
  4. spring — a coil
  5. pass — a permit
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. spring — the season
  8. sharp — clever
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. object — a thing
  14. fine — all right
  15. object — an aim
  16. spring — of water
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. snap — to click
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. object — to protest
  24. pitch — completely

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