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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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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: dip · cold · swing · hide · ruler · pitch · march · pound

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. march — music
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. swing — in golf
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. dip — to sink
  9. swing — music
  10. march — the month
  11. swing — to play on
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. march — the month
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. pitch — completely
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. pound — a weight
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. cold — an illness
  24. hide — to keep secret

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