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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: hide · ground · jam · rush · clip · pitch · rock · pound

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. rush — hurry
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. ground — a position
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. rock — a stone
  11. clip — for paper
  12. ground — crushed
  13. clip — a video
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. pound — a weight
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. pitch — completely
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. ground — the earth
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. clip — to cut

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