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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
468
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: season · rule · drill · pit · saw · bass · pitch · chair

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. rule — a law
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. bass — low music
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. pit — a hole
  8. pitch — completely
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. pit — in a race
  13. season — in sport
  14. saw — the tool
  15. drill — a practice
  16. drill — the tool
  17. rule — government
  18. bass — the fish
  19. drill — army training
  20. season — of the year
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. saw — the tool
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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