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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 120 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: rock · pitch · game · mug · dip · coach · pound · bat

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. bat — the animal
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. mug — a cup
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. rock — music
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. dip — to sink
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. pitch — completely
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. rock — a stone
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. pound — a weight
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. game — a match
  20. mug — to rob
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. game — wild animals
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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