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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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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 · bat · rest · content · chest · stand · cap · bound

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. bound — certain
  3. content — the amount
  4. rest — a break
  5. pitch — completely
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. chest — a box
  8. rest — what's left
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. bound — obliged
  12. cap — of ice
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. content — happy
  15. cap — a hat
  16. chest — of your body
  17. bat — the animal
  18. cap — a lid
  19. rest — what's left
  20. stand — to bear
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. bound — tied together
  24. chest — of your body

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