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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. band — a ring
  3. fork — in a road
  4. saw — the tool
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. saw — the tool
  7. club — for dancing
  8. drill — a practice
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. club — a group
  11. club — for golf
  12. cold — not warm
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — an illness
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. band — a music group
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. wake — a trail
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. drill — army training
  23. drill — the tool
  24. wake — before a funeral

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