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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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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: shower · staff · pitch · wind · plane · track · straw · foot

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. staff — employees
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. staff — employees
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. track — to keep track
  10. shower — rain
  11. staff — a stick
  12. foot — a measure
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. track — a path
  16. wind — moving air
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. plane — a tool
  19. shower — to wash
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. track — a song

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