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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: pitch · spell · last · bear · roll · bay · clip · club

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. pitch — completely
  3. spell — letters
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. last — to go on
  6. bear — the animal
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. club — a group
  9. clip — to cut
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. clip — a video
  12. roll — a cake
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. spell — a short time
  16. club — for golf
  17. roll — a list
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. bear — the animal
  20. spell — magic
  21. club — for dancing
  22. last — finally
  23. clip — for paper
  24. pitch — a sports field

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