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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: pitch · wave · chip · content · mug · bark · kick · net

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. mug — to rob
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. content — happy
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. content — the amount
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. net — in sport
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. mug — a cup
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. chip — to eat
  17. bark — to shout
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. pitch — completely
  20. kick — in football
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. mug — a face
  23. chip — for betting
  24. net — for catching

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