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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.

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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: trunk · bear · sharp · capital · ground · pitch · face · pound

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. ground — the earth
  4. face — to confront
  5. bear — the animal
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. face — to point toward
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. ground — a position
  12. ground — crushed
  13. capital — a city
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. sharp — clever
  18. pound — a weight
  19. bear — the animal
  20. pitch — completely
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. capital — money
  24. trunk — of a tree

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