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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: degree · nail · pitch · board · file · hand · lean · firm

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. lean — to bend
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. firm — steady
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. file — a line of people
  7. file — a tool
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. file — a document
  11. board — a committee
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. degree — temperature
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. hand — help
  17. lean — thin
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. firm — a company
  20. pitch — completely
  21. degree — from a university
  22. hand — in cards
  23. firm — decided
  24. degree — an amount

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