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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: pitch · band · cold · scale · lean · jam · lie · saw

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. lie — to recline
  5. band — a ring
  6. pitch — completely
  7. lean — thin
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. lean — to bend
  10. saw — the tool
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. scale — size or range
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. scale — in music
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. band — a music group
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. cold — an illness
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. saw — the tool

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