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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 116 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 · cap · bore · fine · cell · file · clip · land

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  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. cap — of ice
  2. bore — to drill
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. cap — a lid
  5. cell — a phone
  6. clip — to cut
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. clip — for paper
  9. cell — in biology
  10. land — ground
  11. pitch — completely
  12. file — a line of people
  13. fine — all right
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. land — a country
  17. clip — a video
  18. fine — high quality
  19. file — a document
  20. land — to come down
  21. cap — a hat
  22. file — a tool
  23. bore — to tire
  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