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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 · fork · cold · pitch · jam · sharp · arm · roll

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. roll — a list
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. fork — in a road
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. cold — an illness
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. rock — a stone
  14. pitch — completely
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. roll — a cake
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. cold — not warm
  21. sharp — clever
  22. rock — music
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. pitch — a sports field

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