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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: coach · bat · bass · pitch · craft · wind · fall · rock

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. fall — to drop
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. bass — low music
  9. bass — the fish
  10. fall — to drop
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. rock — music
  13. craft — boats
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — moving air
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. bat — the animal
  18. rock — a stone
  19. craft — a skill
  20. pitch — completely
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. fall — the season
  24. rock — to move gently

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