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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: rock · ground · pitch · wind · last · band · fan · nail

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. last — final
  8. ground — the earth
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. ground — crushed
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. band — a music group
  13. wind — moving air
  14. rock — a stone
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. last — finally
  17. rock — music
  18. band — a ring
  19. wind — moving air
  20. last — to go on
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. ground — a position
  24. pitch — completely

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