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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: deal · march · lean · pitch · tube · trunk · shower · roll

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. tube — a container
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. lean — to bend
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. march — music
  8. march — the month
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. roll — a cake
  12. shower — rain
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. deal — to handle
  15. shower — to wash
  16. tube — the underground
  17. roll — a list
  18. pitch — completely
  19. lean — thin
  20. march — the month
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. trunk — of a tree

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