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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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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. capital — money
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. pitch — completely
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. game — wild animals
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. saw — the tool
  10. capital — a city
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. game — a match
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. saw — the tool
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. fork — in a road
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. coach — a trainer

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