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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · cold · mouse · mark · charge · wound · ground · swing

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. wound — an injury
  4. cold — an illness
  5. ground — the earth
  6. mark — a trace
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wound — an injury
  9. swing — music
  10. charge — a price
  11. swing — to play on
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. swing — in golf
  15. charge — in control
  16. ground — crushed
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. cold — not warm
  19. ground — a position
  20. pitch — completely
  21. mark — a grade
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. mouse — for a computer

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