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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: pitcher · drill · pitch · toast · content · wind · saw · root

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. root — of a word
  3. root — the cause
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. wind — moving air
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. drill — the tool
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. wind — moving air
  12. drill — a practice
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. saw — the tool
  15. pitch — completely
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. root — of a plant
  20. content — happy
  21. saw — the tool
  22. toast — bread
  23. content — the amount
  24. drill — army training

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