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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: wind · wound · pitcher · track · mug · pitch · pound · sharp

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. mug — a face
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. track — to keep track
  14. pitch — completely
  15. wind — moving air
  16. sharp — clever
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. mug — to rob
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. wound — an injury
  22. track — a song
  23. mug — a cup
  24. track — a path

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