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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 116 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: pit · pitch · wound · mate · face · dip · branch · pound

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. face — to confront
  5. wound — an injury
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. pit — in a race
  9. pound — a weight
  10. dip — to sink
  11. branch — a division
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. mate — to breed
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. wound — an injury
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. pit — a hole
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. face — part of the head
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. face — to point toward
  22. mate — a friend
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. pitch — completely

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