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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: bound · face · bowl · hand · straw · pitch · trunk · game

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. face — to confront
  4. face — part of the head
  5. game — a match
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. bound — certain
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. hand — in cards
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. face — to point toward
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bound — obliged
  20. pitch — completely
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — help

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