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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: ground · nail · cell · rash · pitch · pit · fan · face

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. cell — a phone
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. rash — hasty
  5. pit — in a race
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. pitch — completely
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. ground — the earth
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. rash — a series
  15. face — to point toward
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. ground — a position
  18. face — to confront
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. ground — crushed
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. cell — in biology
  23. face — part of the head
  24. pit — a hole

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