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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: rule · stock · capital · fork · pitch · lean

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. lean — to bend
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. rule — government
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. stock — shares
  9. lean — thin
  10. rule — a law
  11. fork — in a road
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. stock — goods
  16. pitch — completely
  17. capital — a city
  18. capital — money

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