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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 · wound · pit · cap · march · bear · bore · cold

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. pitch — completely
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. march — music
  6. cold — not warm
  7. wound — an injury
  8. cap — of ice
  9. wound — an injury
  10. pit — a hole
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. bear — the animal
  15. march — the month
  16. cold — an illness
  17. bear — the animal
  18. cap — a lid
  19. pit — in a race
  20. cap — a hat
  21. march — the month
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. bore — to tire
  24. bore — to drill

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