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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: kick · spell · pitch · mine · drill · fork · cue · land

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. pitch — completely
  3. kick — in football
  4. mine — for digging
  5. land — ground
  6. cue — a signal
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. land — a country
  9. fork — in a road
  10. cue — for pool
  11. cue — a hint
  12. drill — a practice
  13. spell — a short time
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. drill — the tool
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — magic
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. land — to come down
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. drill — army training

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