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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: nail · pitch · can · pit · straw · toast · clip · cold

  1. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  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. nail — for a hammer
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. pitch — completely
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. clip — a video
  6. can — to be able to
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. clip — for paper
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. can — a tin
  13. clip — to cut
  14. cold — not warm
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. cold — an illness
  19. pit — a hole
  20. toast — bread
  21. pit — in a race
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. can — a tin
  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