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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: pitcher · chair · hand · ball · court · lean · wave · pitch

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. lean — thin
  3. pitch — completely
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. chair — a leader
  6. court — of law
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. court — for sport
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. hand — in cards
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. hand — help
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. ball — a great time
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. ball — a dance
  23. court — of a king
  24. lean — to bend

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