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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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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 · tear · cap · chest · band · wake · game · safe

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. band — a music group
  3. pitch — completely
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wake — a trail
  8. cap — a hat
  9. chest — of your body
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. band — a ring
  12. chest — of your body
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. cap — a lid
  16. cap — of ice
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. game — a match
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. game — wild animals
  24. chest — a box

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