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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: ground · stick · ball · spring · pitch · swing · mug · band

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. ground — crushed
  3. pitch — completely
  4. band — a ring
  5. spring — a coil
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. mug — to rob
  8. swing — to play on
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. ground — a position
  11. spring — of water
  12. ground — the earth
  13. mug — a face
  14. band — a music group
  15. ball — a dance
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. spring — the season
  19. swing — music
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. swing — in golf
  24. mug — a cup

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