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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 120 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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. file — a tool
  3. fork — in a road
  4. file — a document
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. drill — army training
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. ground — crushed
  10. ground — the earth
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. ground — a position
  14. march — the month
  15. pitch — completely
  16. drill — the tool
  17. march — music
  18. file — a line of people
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. drill — a practice
  22. pound — a weight
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. fork — a garden tool

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