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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

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

Word bank: bass · fork · pitch · cell · nail · race

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. cell — in biology
  3. race — the arms race
  4. bass — the fish
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. cell — a phone
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. fork — in a road
  10. race — humankind
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. bass — low music
  15. race — a contest
  16. pitch — completely
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. fork — to eat with

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