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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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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: chest · cell · rush · march · pitch · ground · cue · lash

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. rush — hurry
  3. march — music
  4. ground — crushed
  5. chest — a box
  6. march — the month
  7. cell — a phone
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. ground — a position
  10. cue — a signal
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. cue — a hint
  14. ground — the earth
  15. chest — of your body
  16. cell — in biology
  17. march — the month
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. cue — for pool
  23. chest — of your body
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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