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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.

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: pitch · shower · wax · fork · land · court · ruler · season

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. season — of the year
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. court — of law
  5. fork — in a road
  6. land — ground
  7. pitch — completely
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. land — to come down
  11. season — in sport
  12. land — a country
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. shower — to wash
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. wax — to grow
  19. shower — rain
  20. court — for sport
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. court — of a king
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. wax — in the ear

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