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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bear · track · chest · file · game · board · degree · pitch

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. bear — the animal
  4. chest — of your body
  5. board — a committee
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. bear — the animal
  8. chest — of your body
  9. track — to keep track
  10. file — a document
  11. file — a line of people
  12. track — a song
  13. file — a tool
  14. degree — an amount
  15. degree — from a university
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. game — wild animals
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. board — to get on
  20. track — a path
  21. game — a match
  22. pitch — completely
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. degree — temperature

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