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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 · jam · pound · branch · bat · ruler · face · degree

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. face — to confront
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. face — part of the head
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. degree — temperature
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. branch — a division
  14. pitch — completely
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. bat — the animal
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — an amount
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. face — to point toward
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. pound — a weight

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