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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: pitch · lean · kid · capital · row · trunk · tear · toast

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. tear — from crying
  6. pitch — completely
  7. kid — child
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. row — a line
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — money
  13. tear — from crying
  14. lean — to bend
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. kid — to tease
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. row — to paddle
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. capital — a city
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. lean — thin
  23. toast — bread
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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