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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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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: mug · cold · pound · pitch · tear · nail · pitcher · dip

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitch — completely
  6. cold — an illness
  7. mug — a cup
  8. cold — not warm
  9. tear — from crying
  10. mug — a face
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. mug — to rob
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. pound — a weight
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. tear — from crying
  21. dip — to sink
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. tear — to rip
  24. pound — for dogs

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