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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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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: bat · tube · pitch · perch · fall · lie · racket · sharp

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. lie — to recline
  4. bat — the animal
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. perch — the fish
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. fall — to drop
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. fall — the season
  16. tube — the underground
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. fall — to drop
  19. tube — a container
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. pitch — completely

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