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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: board · foot · bulb · wind · present · land · pitch · swing

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. present — a gift
  3. land — a country
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. foot — a measure
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. bulb — for light
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. wind — moving air
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. board — to get on
  13. land — to come down
  14. swing — to play on
  15. wind — moving air
  16. pitch — completely
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. swing — music
  19. present — the time now
  20. board — a committee
  21. swing — in golf
  22. bulb — for light
  23. land — ground
  24. present — there

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