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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: squash · pitch · ground · foot · sharp · file · tube · degree

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. file — a line of people
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. tube — the underground
  6. foot — a measure
  7. degree — temperature
  8. tube — a container
  9. degree — an amount
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. ground — crushed
  13. ground — a position
  14. squash — the sport
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. squash — to crush
  17. file — a document
  18. degree — from a university
  19. ground — the earth
  20. file — a tool
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. sharp — clever
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. pitch — completely

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