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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 · cap · bound · branch · rash · wave · fall · kid

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. cap — a lid
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. fall — to drop
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. fall — to drop
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — child
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. rash — hasty
  13. pitch — completely
  14. rash — a series
  15. kid — to tease
  16. cap — a hat
  17. bound — obliged
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. branch — a division
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bound — certain
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. cap — of ice

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