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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
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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: bound · lean · bat · pitch · content · calf · degree · chair

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. bat — the animal
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. degree — an amount
  6. degree — temperature
  7. lean — to bend
  8. pitch — completely
  9. content — the amount
  10. degree — from a university
  11. bound — obliged
  12. bound — tied together
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. lean — thin
  19. content — happy
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. chair — a leader
  24. bound — certain

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