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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: pitch · wound · bass · spell · cue · pit · clip · straw

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. pit — in a race
  6. wound — an injury
  7. pit — a hole
  8. cue — for pool
  9. spell — a short time
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. clip — a video
  14. bass — low music
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. cue — a hint
  17. pitch — completely
  18. clip — to cut
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. clip — for paper
  21. spell — letters
  22. cue — a signal
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. bass — the fish

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