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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  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. nail — for a hammer
  2. march — the month
  3. march — the month
  4. drill — army training
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. deal — to handle
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. file — a tool
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. drill — a practice
  13. march — music
  14. face — to confront
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. file — a line of people
  19. kick — in football
  20. drill — the tool
  21. face — part of the head
  22. file — a document
  23. face — to point toward
  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