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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: pitch · rule · foot · board · fork · kid · ground · wound

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. board — a committee
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. ground — crushed
  5. rule — a law
  6. wound — an injury
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. wound — an injury
  9. pitch — completely
  10. ground — a position
  11. kid — child
  12. kid — to tease
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. fork — in a road
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. ground — the earth
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. board — to get on
  23. rule — government
  24. foot — a measure

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