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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: chair · present · hide · pitch · saw · spring · can · bat

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. spring — of water
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. present — a gift
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bat — the animal
  12. chair — a leader
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. present — there
  15. saw — the tool
  16. can — to be able to
  17. spring — the season
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. can — a tin
  21. can — a tin
  22. spring — a coil
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. present — the time now

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