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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: chip · pitcher · ground · pitch · cold · tube · firm · march

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. march — the month
  4. cold — not warm
  5. chip — to eat
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. tube — the underground
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. ground — a position
  10. march — music
  11. cold — an illness
  12. tube — a container
  13. firm — a company
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. chip — for betting
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. firm — steady
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. ground — the earth
  20. pitch — completely
  21. march — the month
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. ground — crushed
  24. cold — the Cold War

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