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

Word bank: pound · ruler · capital · face · fork · pitch

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. pitch — completely
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. fork — in a road
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. pound — a weight
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. face — to confront
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. capital — money
  12. face — part of the head
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. face — to point toward
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. pitch — a sports field

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