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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: pitch · cabinet · fan · march · deal · nail · file · game

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. deal — to handle
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. march — the month
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. file — a document
  14. game — a match
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. game — wild animals
  18. file — a tool
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. file — a line of people
  21. pitch — completely
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. march — music
  24. nail — on a finger

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