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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 came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. net — for catching
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. race — humankind
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. band — a ring
  10. drill — the tool
  11. race — the arms race
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. band — a music group
  14. net — in sport
  15. pitch — completely
  16. net — after costs
  17. race — a contest
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. plane — a tool
  20. drill — a practice
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. drill — army training

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