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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: chair · pop · net · drill · pit · lie · pitch · content

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. chair — a leader
  4. drill — the tool
  5. lie — to recline
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. content — the amount
  8. pop — soda
  9. pitch — completely
  10. drill — a practice
  11. net — in sport
  12. pit — in a race
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. pop — music
  16. pit — a hole
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. pop — to visit
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. net — for catching
  21. net — after costs
  22. drill — army training
  23. content — happy
  24. content — videos and posts

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