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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: swing · pitch · bat · wake · net · stand · deal · straw

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. net — in sport
  4. net — after costs
  5. swing — music
  6. swing — to play on
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. swing — in golf
  9. stand — to bear
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. deal — to handle
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. bat — the animal
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. wake — a trail
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. net — for catching
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. pitch — completely
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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