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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: pitcher · mate · perch · pitch · suit · degree · band · hand

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. band — a ring
  3. degree — from a university
  4. suit — in cards
  5. mate — a partner
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. hand — help
  8. perch — the fish
  9. mate — a friend
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. hand — in cards
  12. degree — temperature
  13. pitch — completely
  14. suit — clothes
  15. degree — an amount
  16. band — a music group
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. mate — to breed
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pitcher — a jug

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