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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mate · pitch · spring · scale · hand · race · ruler · drill

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. hand — in cards
  3. hand — help
  4. drill — a practice
  5. pitch — completely
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. drill — army training
  8. mate — a friend
  9. spring — of water
  10. mate — a partner
  11. scale — size or range
  12. scale — in music
  13. mate — to breed
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. race — humankind
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. race — a contest
  19. race — the arms race
  20. spring — a coil
  21. drill — the tool
  22. spring — the season
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. scale — for weighing

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