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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.

Make a worksheet

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: pitch · coach · straw · hide · content · lean · foot · sharp

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. lean — to bend
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. sharp — clever
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. pitch — completely
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. content — the amount
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. content — happy
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. lean — thin
  23. foot — a measure
  24. hide — animal skin

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