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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: drill · cell · fork · pitch · current · club

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. 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. club — for golf
  2. cell — a phone
  3. current — of water
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. cell — in biology
  6. current — electric
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. pitch — completely
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. drill — a practice
  12. club — for dancing
  13. current — happening now
  14. fork — in a road
  15. drill — the tool
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. club — a group
  18. 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