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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: fan · fork · pitcher · bass · drill · march · object · nail

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. object — to protest
  10. drill — army training
  11. march — the month
  12. object — a thing
  13. march — the month
  14. march — music
  15. fork — in a road
  16. drill — the tool
  17. drill — a practice
  18. bass — low music
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. bass — the fish
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. object — an aim

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