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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.

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: mate · roll · temple · hand · pitch · wind · track · ball

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. mate — to breed
  3. ball — a great time
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. wind — moving air
  6. ball — a dance
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. wind — moving air
  9. pitch — completely
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. roll — a list
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. track — to keep track
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. track — a path
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. mate — a partner
  20. hand — in cards
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. mate — a friend
  23. track — a song
  24. roll — a cake

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