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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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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: kid · saw · rash · hand · pitch · jam · pit · wave

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. pitch — completely
  4. kid — child
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. pit — a hole
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. saw — the tool
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. rash — hasty
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. pit — in a race
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. hand — help
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. rash — a series
  23. saw — the tool
  24. hand — in cards

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