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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 120 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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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: mate · saw · calf · pitch · pitcher · press · chest · clip

  1. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. press — a publisher
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. clip — for paper
  5. press — to push
  6. clip — a video
  7. mate — a partner
  8. saw — the tool
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. mate — a friend
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. saw — the tool
  13. clip — to cut
  14. chest — of your body
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. mate — to breed
  17. chest — of your body
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. chest — a box
  24. pitch — completely

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