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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: pitcher · straw · pitch · board · cold · roll · bank · rest

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. roll — a cake
  5. bank — of a river
  6. rest — what's left
  7. roll — a list
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. cold — not warm
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. board — a committee
  13. rest — a break
  14. rest — what's left
  15. cold — an illness
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. board — to get on
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. pitch — completely
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. bank — for money

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