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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 116 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: last · rash · pitch · bound · cell · bat · present · wax

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — finally
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. bound — obliged
  8. present — a gift
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. last — final
  12. rash — hasty
  13. rash — a series
  14. wax — to grow
  15. bat — the animal
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bound — certain
  19. cell — a phone
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. present — the time now
  22. present — there
  23. pitch — completely
  24. bound — tied together

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