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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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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: press · cold · pitch · stick · saw · racket · swing · club

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. swing — in golf
  4. swing — to play on
  5. press — to push
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. saw — the tool
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. pitch — completely
  10. club — for golf
  11. press — a publisher
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. press — newspapers
  14. swing — music
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. cold — not warm
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. club — a group
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. saw — the tool
  24. club — for dancing

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