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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: bowl · coach · file · pitch · squash · fall · kid · fork

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. file — a line of people
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. fork — in a road
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. file — a document
  9. squash — the sport
  10. squash — to crush
  11. fall — to drop
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. kid — child
  17. fall — to drop
  18. pitch — completely
  19. kid — to tease
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. file — a tool
  24. fall — the season

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