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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: bass · date · cap · wound · ball · game · pitch · rush

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. ball — a dance
  3. date — the fruit
  4. game — wild animals
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cap — a hat
  7. game — a match
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. ball — a great time
  11. bass — low music
  12. cap — a lid
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. rush — hurry
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. wound — an injury
  18. bass — the fish
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. pitch — completely
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. wound — an injury

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