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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: lean · band · cell · bore · bear · saw · pitch · present

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. bear — the animal
  3. band — a ring
  4. present — there
  5. cell — a phone
  6. bore — to tire
  7. lean — thin
  8. lean — to bend
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. band — a music group
  11. bore — to drill
  12. present — a gift
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. cell — in biology
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. pitch — completely
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. saw — the tool
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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