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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: pitch · prune · row · wound · lie · chest · stand · band

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. wound — an injury
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. stand — to bear
  5. lie — to recline
  6. band — a ring
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. chest — a box
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. wound — an injury
  13. row — a line
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. pitch — completely
  17. chest — of your body
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. band — a music group
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. row — to paddle
  22. prune — to trim
  23. chest — of your body
  24. prune — to trim

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