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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: degree · pitch · toast · ground · lash · jam · tear · pitcher

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. toast — bread
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. ground — crushed
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. degree — from a university
  9. tear — from crying
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. tear — from crying
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. pitch — completely
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. tear — to rip
  17. ground — the earth
  18. degree — an amount
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. ground — a position
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. degree — temperature
  24. jam — a tight spot

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