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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: rash · lean · mine · bat · pitch · leaves · straw · dip

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. lean — thin
  3. lean — to bend
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. rash — hasty
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bat — the animal
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. rash — a series
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. mine — for digging
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. pitch — completely
  23. dip — to sink
  24. mine — an explosive

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