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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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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 · plane · lie · bowl · prune · staff · pit · bark

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. pit — a hole
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. plane — a tool
  9. pit — in a race
  10. staff — a stick
  11. bark — to shout
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. staff — employees
  14. prune — to trim
  15. staff — employees
  16. pitch — completely
  17. prune — to trim
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. lie — to recline
  24. lie — an untruth

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