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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: foot · tube · pitch · last · march · bass · chair · spring

  1. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. spring — the season
  4. march — the month
  5. bass — low music
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. chair — a leader
  8. march — the month
  9. last — to go on
  10. tube — a container
  11. spring — a coil
  12. march — music
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. last — finally
  17. bass — the fish
  18. last — final
  19. tube — the underground
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. pitch — completely
  22. foot — a measure
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. spring — of water

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