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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: content · saw · fork · lean · shower · staff · spring · pitch

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. pitch — completely
  3. lean — to bend
  4. spring — the season
  5. saw — the tool
  6. staff — employees
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. staff — employees
  9. saw — the tool
  10. lean — thin
  11. content — happy
  12. staff — a stick
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. spring — of water
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. spring — a coil
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. content — the amount
  22. shower — to wash
  23. shower — rain
  24. fork — in a road

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