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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 · firm · fall · kid · hand · saw · cabinet · roll

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. saw — the tool
  3. firm — decided
  4. roll — a list
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. fall — to drop
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. pitch — completely
  10. kid — child
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. fall — to drop
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. kid — to tease
  16. saw — the tool
  17. firm — steady
  18. hand — in cards
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. roll — a cake
  21. firm — a company
  22. fall — the season
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. roll — on a roll

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