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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · pitcher · bowl · last · chest · face · pop · trunk

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. last — final
  3. pop — to visit
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. chest — of your body
  6. last — to go on
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. chest — of your body
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. last — finally
  11. face — to point toward
  12. face — part of the head
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. pop — music
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. pit — in a race
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. face — to confront
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. chest — a box
  24. pop — soda

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