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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: arm · rash · wave · row · capital · pitch · kid · fork

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. kid — to tease
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. row — a line
  7. row — to paddle
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — child
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. pitch — completely
  14. rash — hasty
  15. rash — a series
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. capital — a city
  23. fork — in a road
  24. wave — with your hand

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