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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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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: pitch · fork · lean · content · hand · race · coach · mark

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. hand — in cards
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. race — humankind
  6. lean — thin
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. race — a contest
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. mark — a grade
  12. lean — to bend
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. content — the amount
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. pitch — completely
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. mark — a trace
  21. hand — help
  22. fork — in a road
  23. content — happy
  24. race — the arms race

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