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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 120 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: chair · land · foot · pitch · stick · firm · shower · wind

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. shower — rain
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. firm — steady
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. chair — a leader
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. shower — to wash
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. land — a country
  15. wind — moving air
  16. land — to come down
  17. pitch — completely
  18. foot — a measure
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. wind — moving air
  22. land — ground
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. firm — decided

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