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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: tear · band · drill · pitch · hide · tube · bowl · pitcher

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. band — a music group
  3. drill — army training
  4. band — a ring
  5. pitch — completely
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. tear — from crying
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. drill — the tool
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. tube — the underground
  18. drill — a practice
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. tube — a container
  21. tear — to rip
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. bowl — to roll

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