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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: bat · plane · pitch · race · nail · chair · bound · hide

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. chair — a leader
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. race — a contest
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. bat — the animal
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. bound — obliged
  19. plane — a tool
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. pitch — completely
  22. race — the arms race
  23. bound — certain
  24. race — humankind

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