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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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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: fork · race · bore · wind · capital · coach · perch · pitch

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  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. capital — a big letter
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. fork — in a road
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. capital — a city
  8. capital — money
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. bore — to drill
  12. race — humankind
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — the arms race
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. perch — the fish
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bore — to tire
  20. wind — moving air
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. fork — a garden tool
  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