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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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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: snap · leaves · stand · ground · pitch · last · pit · date

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. ground — a position
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. ground — crushed
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. stand — to bear
  8. date — the fruit
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. last — finally
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. pitch — completely
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. last — final
  17. pit — a hole
  18. pit — in a race
  19. last — to go on
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. snap — to click
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. ground — the earth
  24. stand — on your feet

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