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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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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: game · fall · rule · pitch · scale · can · pound · march

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. fall — to drop
  3. march — the month
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. fall — the season
  8. rule — government
  9. game — wild animals
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. can — a tin
  12. fall — to drop
  13. scale — in music
  14. march — the month
  15. rule — a law
  16. pound — a weight
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. can — to be able to
  19. game — a match
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. march — music
  22. pitch — completely
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. scale — size or range

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