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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: wind · cap · charge · hide · bat · foot · pitch · land

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. land — to come down
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. charge — a price
  11. charge — electricity
  12. land — ground
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. foot — a measure
  17. cap — of ice
  18. cap — a lid
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. land — a country
  21. bat — the animal
  22. cap — a hat
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. charge — in control

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