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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: mate · fine · wind · wound · hand · stand · pitch · plane

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. pitch — completely
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mate — to breed
  5. wind — moving air
  6. hand — help
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. hand — in cards
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. mate — a partner
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. plane — a tool
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. wind — moving air
  16. stand — to bear
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. wound — an injury
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. fine — high quality
  24. mate — a friend

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