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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: pitch · drill · stick · field · rash · foot · sharp · chest

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. chest — of your body
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. pitch — completely
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. chest — a box
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. chest — of your body
  12. field — for sport
  13. foot — a measure
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. drill — army training
  16. rash — a series
  17. rash — hasty
  18. drill — the tool
  19. field — a subject
  20. sharp — clever
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. field — farmland
  24. sharp — exactly

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