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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 · fall · chip · last · squash · track · chest · face

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — finally
  5. fall — the season
  6. track — a path
  7. face — to point toward
  8. face — to confront
  9. face — part of the head
  10. chest — of your body
  11. squash — the sport
  12. chip — to eat
  13. pitch — completely
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. track — to keep track
  16. fall — to drop
  17. chest — a box
  18. track — a song
  19. chip — for betting
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. last — final
  24. squash — to crush

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