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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pitch · hand · pit · roll · saw · mine · club · wound

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. pitch — completely
  3. club — for dancing
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. club — for golf
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — an injury
  8. pit — in a race
  9. club — a group
  10. hand — in cards
  11. roll — a cake
  12. hand — help
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. roll — a list
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. mine — for digging
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — the tool
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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