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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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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: firm · straw · lash · degree · pitch · pass · court · snap

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. firm — a company
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. court — of a king
  9. court — for sport
  10. firm — steady
  11. degree — from a university
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. pitch — completely
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. firm — decided
  16. court — of law
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. snap — to click
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. degree — an amount
  22. pass — a permit
  23. degree — temperature
  24. pitch — a sports field

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