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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: roll · lie · tube · straw · pitcher · branch · pitch · coach

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. branch — a division
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. tube — a container
  14. roll — a cake
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. tube — the underground
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lie — to recline
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. roll — a list

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