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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: pitcher · race · chest · calf · perch · land · board · pitch

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. pitch — completely
  3. chest — of your body
  4. board — a committee
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. land — a country
  10. board — to get on
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. land — to come down
  13. race — humankind
  14. race — the arms race
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. chest — a box
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. chest — of your body
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. race — a contest
  24. land — ground

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