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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: club · bowl · branch · clip · pitch · snap · plane · pitcher

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. club — a group
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. clip — to cut
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. plane — a tool
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. snap — to click
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. club — for golf
  11. branch — a division
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. pitch — completely
  15. clip — for paper
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. club — for dancing
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. clip — a video

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